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What’s In Your Salad?

In the daily, everyday 9-5 grind it is very easy to lose track of time and before you know, it’s your lunch break.  Did you remember to pack a healthy lunch to compliment your hard work and dedication in the gym? Or did you forget your lunch at home and now you must decide which take-out spot is best for you.  You may think the fast food restaurant down the block that serves salads might be a good choice.  Salads may seem like the smart choice because of their healthy appearance. Before you make that decision let’s think it through, does this meal have adequate nutrients to provide you with fuel for your next grueling work out? Or are fast food salads just as bad as a burger and fries? Let’s take a closer look at some salads.

Chick-Fil-A: Grilled Chicken Market Salad. (200 calories, 6g fat, 15g carbs, 25g protein, 4g fiber, 650mg sodium, 8g sugar)

Panera Bread: Strawberry poppy seed salad with chicken (340 calories, 13g fat, 280mg sodium, 25g protein, 31 carbs, 6g fiber, 20g sugar)

McDonalds: Southwest Grilled Chicken Salad (350 calories, 8g fat, 37g protein, 650mg sodium, 27g carbs, 9g of sugar)

In many fast food salads across the board there is an abundance of sodium, fat, and sugar.  Compared with other menu choices, these three salads were the best options in terms of their sodium levels and nutritional value.  Sodium can cause water retention and severe dehydration which is why you should only consume 2,300 mg a day.  Many adults consume in excess of 3,400 mg of sodium each day.

In comparison to other items on the menu, choosing a salad is one of the healthier options, but how can you make it better for you? Always go with grilled chicken over crispy; crispy chicken adds to the saturated fats that are dangerous to consume in excess. The extra breading increases the carbohydrate content and may cause blood sugar levels to spike. Be mindful of the portion of salad dressing; these salad dressings are filled with preservatives, sodium, and calories from fat. An easy swap is to go with just oil and vinegar. Ask for your salad without cheese to help reduce sodium and fat content.

Out of all the salads offered in fast food chains, these three made the list, so be very wary when ordering take out and always pay close attention to the nutrition facts.

 

By Brandon Ayala

Recipe of the Week: Grilled Spiced Cauliflower

Yields: 4 Side servings
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

For the Spice Mixture:

  • 2 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 2 teaspoons ground turmeric
  • 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
  • 1/2 teaspoon powdered ginger
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For the Cauliflower:

  • 1 head of cauliflower, trimmed of green leaves and cut into 3/4-inch slices (see note above)
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves and tender stems

Grill heat: medium-high

Directions:

  1. For the Spice Mixture: In a small bowl, mix together all of the ingredients.
  2. For the Cauliflower: Brush cauliflower all over with oil and season liberally with spice mixture.
  3. Light one chimney full of charcoal. When all the charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and arrange the coals on one side of the charcoal grate. Set cooking grate in place, cover grill and allow to preheat for 5 minutes. Clean and oil the grilling grate. Place cauliflower on hot side of grill and cook, turning, until it is charred in spots on both sides, about 3 minutes per side. Move cauliflower to cool side of the grill, cover, and continue to cook until tender throughout, 10-15 minutes longer.
  4. Transfer cauliflower to a plate, sprinkle with cilantro, and serve.

 

Original recipe from seriouseats.com can be found here!

Recipe of the Week: Apple Pie Oat Muffins

Serves: 12 muffins
Serving Size: 1 muffin

Ingredients

  • 2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (certified gluten-free if necessary)
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 teaspoons apple pie spice
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup applesauce
  • 1 medium apple, grated (about 3/4 cup)
  • 1 large egg white
  • 1/4 cup pure maple syrup (or honey)
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk (or milk of choice)
  • 1/3 cup dried cranberries

Optional Additions:

  • 1/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
  • 1/4 cup mini chocolate chips

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 12-cup muffin pan with non-stick cooking spray. In a large bowl, stir together oats, baking powder, seasonings and salt.
  2. Add applesauce, grated apple, egg white, maple syrup, vanilla extract, milk and cranberries, plus any optional additions. Stir well to incorporate.
  3. Allow the mixture to set and thicken for about 3-5 minutes before spooning into your muffin pan.
  4. Fill muffin cups almost completely full with batter. The muffins will not rise.
  5. Bake for 30 minutes and until the center of each oatmeal muffin is set. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving. If you don’t allow these to cool before taking them out of the muffin pan, they will fall apart. I used a knife around the sides to make removal easier. After cooling, they will set well. Store in a covered container in the fridge for about a week or freeze for up to 3 months.

Nutrition Information

Per serving: Calories: 100

Total Fat: 1g; Sodium: 287mg; Carbohydrate: 20g; Fiber: 2g; Sugar: 9g; Protein: 3g

 

Special shout out to Peak Fitness member, Regina, who shared this recipe and made a batch for the Exercise Physiologists! You can find the original recipe from My Fitness Pal here.

What’s Wrong with Being a Weekday Warrior?

If you’ve ever taken to Google for weight loss advice, you may have come across a rule called “80/20.” Put shortly, it explains that you eat a healthy, strict diet 80 percent of the time and you can let loose the other 20 percent. Essentially eating whatever you want even if it is “unhealthy.” This is a popular approach for many because it appeals to those who work hard during the week and use that as an excuse to binge on weekends. But here’s the issue: it doesn’t work like that.

Let’s talk to about an imaginary client named John Doe. John exercises at Peak and his goals is to lose one pound per week. He’s learned from his Exercise Physiologist that he needs to be expending 3500 calories more than he consumes. He takes a Resting Metabolic Rate test and finds out that to achieve his goal, he needs to eat 1800 calories a day to help him lose that pound. John Doe works really hard during the week to hit his goal; he comes into Peak every morning for his 7AM workout. But then Friday comes around and he decides to hit happy hour after work. John goes over his calorie budget for Friday. He has a family BBQ on Saturday and does the same thing. Sunday John Doe eats okay but misses his weekly workout. This form of eating is often referred to as “binging” and is an unhealthy habit. It’s only 2 days, but Saturday and Sunday account for 28% of your week. By not monitoring his calories on the weekends, John accidentally eats too much and doesn’t lose any weight this week.

Use this graph as an example of how John’s calories look each day:

The moral of the story here is moderation! One slip up will not put you into the red, but a series of slips ups or “cheat days” might! Finding that balance is the key to your weight loss success. You can go to happy hour once in a while and enjoy the graduation BBQ, but it is important to remember not to let that one event string into a series of bad days, thus slowing your progress.

 

By Matt Rhodes

Recipe of the Week: Black Bean Spinach Quesadilla

Serves: 4
Serving Size: 1 Quesadilla

Ingredients

  • 1/2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon minced garlic
  • 8 ounces (240 grams) cremini mushrooms, rinsed, stems trimmed, and sliced
  • 1/4 teaspoon chili powder, or to taste
  • 4 cups (6 ounces or 135 grams) loosely packed baby spinach
  • 1 cup (160 grams) canned black beans, rinsed and drained
  • 2 tablespoons minced fresh or jarred jalapeño chiles, optional
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
  • 4 whole wheat tortillas (approx. 9-10? in diameter) or smaller corn tortillas
  • 1 cup (120 grams) shredded reduced-fat Monterey Jack cheese
  • Fresh cilantro leaves, for garnish 

Directions

  1. In a large nonstick skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and cook for 20 seconds, then add the mushrooms and chili powder and saute, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes, or until mushrooms are light golden and most of the juices have evaporated. Add spinach and stir until wilted, then add the black beans and jalapeños (if desired) and stir well until combined. Season with salt and pepper, transfer to bowl, and set aside. Wipe skillet with paper towel and set aside.
  2. Lay the tortillas on a flat surface. Sprinkle one half of each round with an equal amount of cheese, then divide the mushroom filling equally over the cheese. Fold each tortilla in half.
  3. Reheat the skillet over medium heat. Place one of the quesadillas in the skillet (add a second one if it fits) and cook for about 3 minutes on each side, or until the cheese melts and the inside is warm. Continue to cook the remaining quesadillas. Serve promptly.

Nutrition Information

Per serving: Calories: 370; Total Fat: 12g; Carbohydrate: 44g; Dietary Fiber: 8g; Sugar: 1g; Protein: 20g

 

Original recipe from My Fitness Pal can be found here!

Recipe of the Week: Grilled Scallops with Honeydew-Avocado Salsa

Time: 30 minute
Serves: 4

Ingredients:

  • finely grated lime zest
  • 2 tbsp. fresh lime juice
  • 1 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1½ lb. honeydew melon
  • 1 Hass avocado
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 lb. large sea scallops

Directions:

  1. Light a grill. In a large bowl, combine the lime zest and juice with the 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in the diced honeydew melon and avocado. Season the salsa with salt and black pepper.
  2. Drizzle the scallops with olive oil and season with salt and black pepper. Grill over moderately high heat, turning once, until nicely charred and just cooked through, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Transfer the scallops to plates, spoon the salsa alongside, and serve

 

Original recipe was found on delish.com here!

Recipe of the Week: Rainbow Thai Chicken Salad

TOTAL TIME: 15 MINS
PREP TIME: 15 MINS

INGREDIENTS:

THAI CHICKEN SALAD INGREDIENTS:

  • 3 cups shredded cooked chicken
  • 2 cups shredded purple cabbage
  • 1 cup shredded green cabbage
  • 1 avocado, diced
  • 1 mango, peeled, pitted and diced
  • 1 (large) carrot, julienned or shredded
  • 1 red pepper, cored and julienned (or diced)
  • 1 cup roughly chopped fresh cilantro leaves
  • 1/2 cup chopped green onions
  • 1/4 cup chopped cashews or peanuts

PEANUT DRESSING INGREDIENTS:

  • 1/2 cup natural peanut butter
  • 2-3 tablespoons hot water
  • 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce (if you are gluten-free, use GF soy sauce or tamari)
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • 1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
  • juice of 1 lime
  • pinch of red pepper flakes

DIRECTIONS:
SALAD:

Toss all salad ingredients together until combined. Drizzle with dressing or toss to combine, then serve immediately.

DRESSING:
Whisk all ingredients together until combined. If the dressing is too thick, add hot water a teaspoon at a time until it reaches the consistency you desire.

 

Original recipe from GimmeSomeOven.com can be found here!

Making Friends With Apple Cider Vinegar

With the summer right around the corner, many of us are anxious to shed off a few pounds before beach season arrives.  We are watching what we eat, making healthier nutritional choices and putting in extra time and effort at the gym.  However, regardless of having a healthier nutritional intake many still struggle with portion control.  For most it is challenging to cut portion sizes down without feeling hungry throughout the day.  If you are one of these people, then you might want to consider heading to your local grocery store and picking up some apple cider vinegar.

What is apple cider vinegar? Apple cider vinegar is the fermented juice of crushed apples. It contains acetic acid and nutrients such as B vitamins and vitamin C and other antibiotics.  This substance has also been known to aid the digestive tract.

Does ACV taste good and can I add anything to it?  When used properly, this product has been found to be an effective appetite-suppressant—however the taste may not be so appealing to some, unfortunately.  Therefore, it may be wise to put a small amount of honey or squeezed lemon in the drink.

How does ACV act as an appetite-suppressant?  Research published in the Journal of Functional Foods studies participants who drank a tablespoon of ACV mixed with 8 ounces of water prior to eating.  The results demonstrated that the participants that consumed the substance had lower blood glucose levels compared to participants who didn’t consume the solution. “Acetic acid, the main component in vinegar, may interfere with the body’s ability to digest starch,” says lead study author Carol Johnston, PhD, associate director of the School of Nutrition and Health Promotion at Arizona State University.  “If you’re interfering with the digestion of starch, less is being broken down into calories in the bloodstream. Over time, that might cause a subtle effect on weight,” says Johnston.

A few other studies back up the theory: Consuming two teaspoons of apple cider vinegar before eating a bagel and juice was shown to reduce blood sugar spikes in a 2009 Annals of Nutrition & Metabolism study, while Japanese research published that same year associated vinegar consumption with lower body weight, BMI, weight circumference, and serum triglycerides.

It is important to note that this solution is acidic and may temporarily disrupt the body’s acid-base levels, possibly leading to some gastric reflux in rare scenarios

Regardless of what techniques you use to lose weight, it is important to remember that making healthy food choices (eating the right percentages of your macronutrients: carbohydrates, proteins and fats), spacing out your meals, eliminating simple sugars and high sodium foods from the diet, eating three meals a day with small snacks in between, staying hydrated, and refraining from eating within 3-4 hours before sleep should be your main priorities for proper, healthy weight loss.

 

By Anthony Locast