Posts Tagged ‘Heart Health’

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Interval Training

Monday, March 8th, 2010

I’ve said it before (A LOT), surprising your body is THE BEST way to see results. If you have been doing the same thing at the gym for months on end, you’ve probably stopped seeing results. This means it’s time to switch it up! It’s not enough to get on the elliptical or treadmill and just do the same thing over and over again. Your body gets used to the work and starts to anticipate it and prepare for it. You want to keep those muscles guessing so that they have to work to keep up with you! A great way to so this is with Interval Training.

Interval training is great because:

  • Burn maximum calories.
  • Work harder for shorter period.
  • Train your heart to be better and stronger.
  • Turn your metabolism into a fire burning machine!

**Before you start attempting intervals, you should be able to hold a steady heart rate of around 75% – 80% for 20 minutes.

Triple Three’s

This is a great 21 minute workout with a warm up and cool down. You can do this on a Stationary Bike, Elliptical or Treadmill.

Interval Run

  Moderate RPE Advanced RPE
1. Warm up 3 minutes 2 Warm up 3 minutes 3.5
2. Warm up 2 minutes 5 Warm up 2 minutes 6
3. Run 2 minutes 6 Sprint 2 minutes 8
4. Walk 2 minutes 4 Jog 2 minutes 6
5. Repeat steps 2 & 3 two more times   Repeat steps 2 & 3 two more times  
6. Run 1 minute 7 Run 1 minute 9
7. Walk 1 miunte 4 Jog 1 minute 6
8. Repeat steps 6 & 7 two more times   Repeat steps 6 & 7 two more times  
9. Run 30 seconds 8 Run 30 Seconds 10
10. Walk 30 seconds 4 Walk 30 Seconds 6
11. Repeat steps 9 & 10 two more times   Repeat steps 9 & 10 two more times  
12. COOL DOWN   COOL DOWN  

* RPE- Rate of Persevere Exertion.

If 0 is lying in bed.

5 is a brisk speed walk/ light jog but you can carry a LIGHT conversation.

6- Jog.

7- Saying things like, yup, no, o.k and stop talking to me.

8 – You won’t be talking to anyone!

10 is as fast as you can go / or as hard as you can push yourself on a resistance level.

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10 Healthy Lunch Ideas

Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010

Last but not least we are stocking our refrigerators and cupboards with healthy foods for lunch. For a refresher or to help you build a grocery list CLICK HERE for breakfast ideas , CLICK HERE for dinner ideas and CLICK HERE for snack ideas.

Whether you take lunch with you to work or make lunch at home, here are some great ideas to get you through the week.

1. Whatever you have for dinner, make enough so that you have left overs for lunch. This is the best way to ensure you have a healthy, filling lunch!  From stir fry’s, to fish, to lean red meat to healthy stews – everything can be packed into a lunch bag!

2. Make a Sandwich! Everyone is still a little terrified of bread that they forget how healthy and delicious a sandwich can be. Make it your own way to ensure your getting a nutritious and delicious sandwich. Here are some of my favs :

*I make all my sandwiches with Ezekiel Sprouted Grain Bread*

  • Turkey (Nitrate free) with a Laughing Cow Light cheese and tomato slices.
  • Peanut butter (1 tbsp) with 1/2 a banana
  • Grilled Cheese with 1 ounce of cheese
  • Tuna salad made with plain yogurt and mustard instead of mayo ( I like to throw in fresh chopped apples and a splash of balsamic vinegar)
  • Pizza Muffin – Ezekiel English Muffin (or whole wheat English muffin) with tomato sauce and 1 ounce of cheese (split into two)
  • Breakfast For Lunch Sandwich!  1 egg and 2 whites (cooked), 1 slice of Canadian back bacon, and 1/2 ounce of cheddar cheese

* I will either have a home made vegetable soup with my sandwich, some fresh cut veggies or a salad to help fill me up*

3. Grill a bunch of chicken breasts at the beginning of the week so you have them and can just toss them on a salad for an easy lunch! IMG_0227

4. Use your chicken breasts to make wraps. Click the following recipe titles for a bunch of different wrap ideas!

Don’t forget to use a whole grain wrap!

5. Make a batch of Turkey Burgers at the beginning of the week so you have them to toss on a salad or eat in a whole grain bun!

6. Make a batch of Quinoa!  CLICK HERE for one way to make it- but you can do anything you want to it!

7. Omelets are great for lunch if you work from home or even on the weekend.

8. Pick up a cooked rotisserie chicken from the supermarket and use the chicken for salads, wraps or even a quesadilla! CLICK HERE for a recipe!

9. Make a batch of turkey chili at the beginning of the week and bring one serving of it with you to work to warm up!

10. Make a big Quiche at the beginning of the week and take 2 slices with you to work along with a soup or a salad.  CLICK HERE for my favorite crust-less quiche recipe!

As you can see, there is a plethora of lunch ideas out there. Sometimes you just have to be reminded that they exist. If you have any more ideas please feel free to send them in!

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The Best Breakfast Cereals

Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010

The following are my number one picks for cereals. All high in fiber, low in sugar and as few ingredients as possible. You’ll notice that all of these cereals are made with REAL food. Hard to find in a cereal box these days!images-1

Bite Sized Shredded Wheat - Whole Grain Wheat.

*Come on! This is an amazing cereal with ONE ingredient! How rare!

hero-1

Kashi Whole Grain Cereal Puffs - Kashi Seven Whole Grain & sesame ( Hard red wheat, brown rice, whole grain oats, triticale barley, try, buckwheat, sesame seeds)

*All food, no sugar. Try adding 1/4 cup of Grape Nuts or Original All Bran to add some fiber!

weetabix_original_en

Weetabix : Whole Wheat, Barley Malt Extract, Sugar, Salt, Iron, Niacin, Thiamine Hydrochloride.

* Yes, there is sugar in there- but it’s not corn syrup and it’s not some chemical like Aspartam or Sucralose. Plus your only getting 2 grams of sugar in one serving!

NP-SmartBran-US

Smart Bran – Organic wheat bran, organic oat fiber, organic evaporated cane juice, organic psyllium seed husk, organic barley malt extract, organic oat bran, organic whole oat flour, sea salt.

images

Grape Nuts – Whole grain wheat flour, wheat flour, malted barley four, salt, dried yeast, soy lecithin. *Enriched with the following vitamin and minerals- iron, vitamin B6, zinc to name a few

hero

Original Kashi Go Lean - Soy Grits, Kashi Seven Whole Grain & sesame ( Hard red wheat, brown rice, whole grain oats, triticale barley, try, buckwheat, sesame seeds), evaporated cane juice, corn meal, corn flour, soy protein, wheat bran , oar fiber, corn bran, honey, evaporated cane juice, natural flavors, calcium carbonate, salt, annattoo color.

* 13 grams of protein and 10 grams of fiber in one bowl! Wow! And no chemicals or corn syrup to boot!

ServeImage

All Bran Original (The sticks) – Wheat bran, sugar, malt (corn flour, malted barley), salt, vitamins (thiamine hydrochloride, pyridoxine hydrochloride, folic acid, d-calcium pantothenate), iron.

Type Serving Size Caloires Carbs Protien Fat Fiber Sugar
Bite Sized Shredded Wheat 1 cup 160 37 5 1 6 0
Kashi Whole Grain 7 Cereal Puffs 1 cup 70 15 2 .5 1 0
Weetabix 2 biscuts 130 28 4 1 4 2
Smart Bran 2/3 cup 90 24 3 1 13 6
Grape Nuts 1/2 cup 200 48 6 1 7 4
Original Kashi Go Lean 1 cup 140 30 13 1 10 6
All Bran Original (The sticks) 1/2 cup 90 27 4 1 12 7

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Have a Sandwich, Get a Workout at the same time?

Thursday, February 18th, 2010

Who knew that Sandwiches and working out would go hand and hand! These are great little routines to help the time move fast,  and allow you to get a strength and cardio workout in one shot.

Pick one exercise from each section to form a complete sandwich. Make one Sandwich and then make a whole new and different one! Try making 3 Sandwiches the first time you do this. If you think you can handle a few more, add them in on your next workout!

Step one: The bottom piece of the bread.

This will be an exercise that is always timed.  Here are a few examples:

  • 1 to 2 minute sprint on the treadmill.
  • 60- 90 seconds of jump rope.
  • 2 minutes of jumping jax.

Step Two: Your piece of meat. This consists of 2 weight baring exercises. Here are a few examples:

  • 10 – 12 bicep curls followed by 10 – 12 squats. Repeat 2 more times.
  • 10 – 12 Chest Presses followed by 10 – 12 Dead lifts. Repeat 2 more times.
  • 10 – 12 Bent over Rows follow by 10 – 12 Lunges. Repeat 2 more times.

Step Three: The top slice of bread. This is another timed exercise, but it does not have to be a cardiovascular one.

  • 60 seconds of plank or side plank
  • 60 seconds of push ups
  • 90 seconds of crunches
  • 60 Second Squat and Hold

Rest to bring your heart rate down before you have another sandwich!

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Carbohydrate Free Turkey Burgers

Thursday, February 11th, 2010

These are so easy to make! They’re great on a salad or on an Ezekiel English muffin with some cheddar or avocado! They are also great cold the next day! As you can see I like mine with pickles and tomato’s!

IMG_0667

What You’ll Need:

  1. Pkg lean ground turkey
  2. Diced Onions
  3. 1 egg whipped
  4. 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
  5. Pepper to taste
  6. Montreal Steak Spice to taste (Easy on this, it’s high in salt!)
  7. 2 Tbsp Honey Dijon Mustard

Here’s what you do:

  1. In a pan on medium with a touch of olive oil. Sautee the onions until they are golden (5 minutes)
  2. Combine all ingredients including onions.
  3. In the same pan you used to cook the onions: Spray with olive oil and set to medium.
  4. Form 3 or 4 ounce burgers and cook on medium. (About 3 -5 minutes a side)
  5. Remove from pan and serve!

* Nutritional Information – 4 ounce burger

Calories Carbohydrates Protein Fat Fiber
193 10.5 19.7 1.5 0

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Great, Active, Valentines Day Date!

Wednesday, February 10th, 2010

Whether you have a Valentine or not – Valentines Day should be about loving your heart! Not hurting it!

Normally we celebrate with a box of chocolates and an extravagant meal. Maybe this is the year to switch it up! Instead of putting junk food into your mouth (which will only hurt your heart)- why not do something good for your heart!

The other night, myself and my husband went ice skating! I have not been ice skating since I was 7 years old. I was terrified to step on the ice!!! I could not believe I was such a scared-y cat. But once I got on and got moving I was better (a little anyway!). As I shimmied along I watch children whizz by me in wonderment! “! How did they get so good!? Why can’t I live with no fear?!!” But then I remembered, it takes practice! You only get good at something if you do it. I can’t magically be a good skater just because I’m now an adult. I have to get on the ice again if I want to get better.

IMG_4786

It really was a great night! I worked muscles I have not worked in a long time! I got a great abdominal workout from all the balance work, not to mention the workout my ankles got! And I got to spend quality time with my husband (laughing at myself mind you- but at least I was laughing!)

If you live in the Toronto area, you should pop by Nathan Philips Square Skating Rink.  It’s so much fun! They have Top 40 blasting, disco lights and hot drinks! They’ve made it feel like an old school roller rink (You can rent anything from skates, to hats and mittens to helmets!). If you don’t live in the Toronto area – find your local indoor or outdoor rink – rent some skates and get on the ice!

This is a great activity to do alone, with a friend/loved one or with your entire family this valentines day.

Treat your heart to love & health and not to chocolate this valentines day!

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Something To Think About

Friday, February 5th, 2010

A while back I read a very interesting interview with the New York Times best selling author Michael Pollan who had just written a new book titled In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto. Now, whether or not you agree with all he has to say- it’s still a very interesting and informed point of view. But what struck me most about this interview was how he closed it.

He said, and I quote:
“I think, that the rule to end all rules should simply be, don’t eat anything you’ve ever seen advertised on TV.”

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Since that time, he has released a documentary titled “FOOD INC” – a must see! As well as a new book titled “Food Rules” where he has rules like:
  • Don’t eat anything your great grandmother would not recognize as food. For example- Yogurt tubes
  • Eat all the junk food you want, as long as you make it yourself. – He reminds you what a pain in the butt it is to make cakes and things like french fries. So when you do spend the time to make something – it’s a real treat.

He stresses the cost of food versus the cost of heath-care. How when his parents were growing up, they spent twice as much on food than they did on health care. Now that we live in a society of processed, cheap and mass produced food  – we  spend double on health care and 1/2 as much on food.

What we put into our bodies REALLY does effect our health. Wouldn’t you rather spend the money on feeding yourself yummy, wholesome food then on medication for diabetes and high cholesterol???

Let’s go back to his original challenge – ‘Don’t eat anything you’ve seen advertised on T.V.” A challenging (all be it a tough one to follow.) And I’m sure even he has his moments- you can’t be 100% good 100% of the time. In fact, he was eating a basket of fried something or other while he was being interviewed. But if you can try to accomplish something like this 80% of the time, your way better off then either never doing it or only trying 10 or 20%  of the time!

Try to keep this in the back of your head the next time you go grocery shopping. Best way to accomplish this is to shop the perimeter of the store. This is where majority of the fresh food lives. Or check out local farmer’s markets. You’re pretty much guaranteed to find fresh, local organic fruits, vegetables and protein!
P.S – If you have not done so already- go out and rent FOOD INC. It’s a real eye opener into what we are putting into our bodies everyday.
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5 Workout Do’s

Wednesday, January 27th, 2010

1. DO lift heavier weights. In order to see the results you want, you have to challenge your muscles. That means lifting a weight where you can preform 8 – 12 (15 max) repetitions of the exercise. On the 12th (15th) one, you should be struggling to lift the weight. If you can breeze through 15 repetitions of an exercise it means it’s time to challenge yourself and add a bit of weight.

2. DO change your routine after 6 – 8 weeks. For the same reason we lift challenging weights, we change our routine. Your body gets used to what you are doing. Whether it’s running at a certain speed for a certain amount of time or performing the same weight lifting routine you’ve been doing for months or even years. In order to see results you have to switch things up. You want to surprise you muscles (including your heart!).

3. DO eat protein 30 minutes after workout. Your prime eating time after a workout is 30 – 60 minutes. It’s then that you want to have a high protein snack to restore your muscles. CLICK HERE for a list of great after workout snacks.

4. DO try something different. If you belong to a gym there are all sorts of great classes that are worth the trial. Boot-camp classes, boxing classes, circuit classes and weight lifting classes are a great way to spend an hour. You’ll get the extra push you need and you’ll have fun at the same time!

5. DO ask for help and advice. A trainer is going to push you harder than you will push yourself. That’s just the reality of the situation. A good trainer will also insure that your form is correct- preventing unnecessary injury. And they will tailor your workouts specifically to meet your goals. They will also MAKE SURE you are getting to the gym. If you have an appointment with a trainer and you’re paying for it- chances are your showing up. If a trainer is out of the budget, ask the advice of professionals at the gym. Maybe buy one session every two months to make sure you’re on the right track. More on this tomorrow!

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Workout Motivation

Wednesday, January 20th, 2010

If there is one thing I know for certain, it’s that even though I sometimes DREAD working-out (and yes, even I can dread it) I know with 100% certainty that after the work-out is over, I feel 100% better. I’m AWAYS happy I worked-out. I’m always PROUD of myself for getting off my butt and moving and for whatever reason, after a work-out I always have an easier time reaching for something healthy.

I truly think the HARDEST part of working out is actually starting. Once you start you’re 90% there! Even if you spend 15 or 20 minutes exercising it’s 100% better than no minutes at all! In fact 20 minutes, 3 times a week is nothing to sneeze at (is that even the right expression?). 20 minutes, 3 times a week is fantastic!

So here is my pep talk for the day. Put on your work-out clothes and just START. MOVE. If you have a gym membership – walk in that door (bring your clothes with you to work) and climb onto a machine and just press START. If you work out at home, no problem! This blog is filled with easy to do exercises you can preform at home with little or no equipment. Just put your work-out clothes on, grab a bottle of water, turn on your favorite show and follow one of my circuits. CLICK HERE , HERE or HERE for a few of my many circuits. Or CLICK HERE for my T.V WINNER workout.

You are 100% guaranteed to feel better about yourself after the work-out. And if starting is really the hardest part- then just changing into work-out gear and pressing START puts you 90% closer to feeling better than you do right now :-)

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Heathy Breakfast Ideas

Monday, January 18th, 2010
At the end of 2009 we talked about cleaning out your refrigerator, cupboards, car and purse.  If you have not done this already, now is a great time to throw away all the processed, salt ridden, trans-fat hidden foods in your house. CLICK HERE for a list of what to toss.
I promised I would give you some ideas as to what to fill your cupboards and refrigerator with. Let’s start with breakfast. I’ll hit snacks, lunches, dinners and your purse/car in the next few days. Keep these lists handy and use them to help you grocery shop :-) Even put them on your refrigerator door so that you can use them as a reference when you are deciding what to have in the morning. The key here is to have healthy (yummy) things readily available to grab in the morning on your way out the door. This way you don’t have the option of grabbing a high sugar processed cereal bar – or even worse, noting at all.
  1. Skim or 1% milk.
  2. 1% Chocolate milk
  3. Yogurt – I personally would choose a Greek Style Non Fat Plain Yogurt- but if you hate plain yogurt, pick one that you like.
  4. Eggs.
  5. Cheese.
  6. Cottage cheese.
  7. Fresh fruit like apples, bananas, berries, grapefruit, kiwi’s and pineapple.
  8. Oatmeal.
  9. High Fiber, low sugar cereals like Weetabix and Bite Sized Shredded Wheat
  10. Whole grain or sprouted wheat bread.
  11. Natural peanut butter, almond butter or cashew butter.
  12. Pea-meal Bacon.

10 healthy breakfast ideas you can make with this list:

  • Fresh Fruit Plate.
  • Cottage Cheese and Berries.
  • Yogurt and berries.
  • Toast with Peanut (or other nut butter) and a glass of 1/4 cup chocolate milk – 3/4 cup skim milk.
  • Breakfast sandwich with pea-meal and eggs. – Great to go!
  • Cereal. With or without fresh berries.
  • Banana dipped in Peanut butter with a glass of milk. (add 1/4 chocolate milk to this for a delicious chocolate peanut butter banana breakfast)
  • Oatmeal. You can add banana to sweeten it up. I have a client who puts 1 tbsp of natural peanut butter in her oatmeal!
  • Scrambled, poached, soft boiled or sunny side up eggs and toast.
  • Cheese Toast.
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