Peak Performance Fitness

Lynbrook | New Hyde Park | NY

sports performance

Recipe of the Week: Chipotle Lime Grilled Shrimp

Let’s spice up that summer BBQ routine! This delicious grilled shrimp is served on a stick and marinated in a smoky, chipotle lime marinade.

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Marinate Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes
Servings: 4

Ingredients:

  • 1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
  • 1 chipotle chili in adobo, chopped
  • 2 teaspoons adobo sauce
  • 2 limes, juice and zest
  • 2 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1 teaspoon cumin, toasted and ground
  • salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. Marinate the shrimp in the mixture of the remaining ingredients for at least 20 minutes.
  2. Skewer the shrimp and grill over medium-high heat until cooked, about 1-3 minutes per side. Tip: Add the chipotles to the marinade one at a time and taste test for heat.
  3. Options: Add 1 tablespoon honey to the marinade. Add 2 tablespoons cilantro to the marinade. Add a splash of tequila to the marinade.

 

Original recipe can be found here!

Recipe of the Week: Vegetarian Lasagna

This vegetarian lasagna is loaded with fresh vegetables and each serving is about 200 calories. Perfect to feed the whole family for dinner!

INGREDIENTS:

 

  • 3 cups chopped veggies of your choice (try a mix of broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, and red peppers)
  • 1/2 chopped onion
  • 2 tablespoons minced garlic
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 cup low fat ricotta cheese
  • 1 egg
  • 2 cups fresh spinach
  • 2 cups tomato sauce
  • 12 uncooked oven-ready whole grain lasagna noodles
  • 1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded

INSTRUCTIONS:

  1. Chop the veggies. Saute the onion and garlic in the oil over medium high heat. Add veggies and saute until tender. Set aside.
  2. Whisk egg into ricotta cheese and stir in fresh spinach.
  3. Pour a little sauce in the bottom of a greased 9×13 pan. Top with 4 lasagna noodles,1/2 cup ricotta mixture, 1/2 of the veggies, and 3/4 cup sauce. Repeat; top entire pan with noodles, remaining sauce, and mozzarella cheese.
  4. Cover and bake for 40 minutes at 375 degrees. Remove foil and bake for 10 minutes more or until cheese is bubbly.

NOTES: Check the lasagna at 30 minutes and add 1/4 cup vegetable stock if the lasagna looks too dry.

 

NUTRITION:
Serves: 9
Calories Per Serving: 202
Fat 7.2g, Carbohydrate 25.5g, Protein 11.2g
Original recipe from Pinch of Yum can be found here!

Recipe of the Week: Immune Boosting Lemon Ginger Chicken Soup

Give your immune system the support it needs with this delicious, warming soup! This recipe is packed with ingredients that are good for you, too.

Yields: 16 servings

Ingredients:

  • 2 Tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 pound chicken breast
  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 3 large carrots, diced
  • 2 celery stalks, diced
  • 3 cloves of garlic, diced
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 medium lemon (zest and juice)
  • 1 fist full of fresh ginger (washed, with skin on)
  • 2 quarts of chicken broth
  • 1 can of organic coconut milk (optional)

Directions:

  1. In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and brown.
  2. Add onion, garlic, carrots, celery, salt, and pepper to pan and cook until softened (about 5 minutes).
  3. Add 2 quarts chicken broth and ginger with skin on and bring to a boil. Note: the longer you boil the ginger, the stronger the flavor will be.
  4. Reduce heat, simmer 35-45 minutes
  5. Remove ginger and discard
  6. Remove the chicken, shred and set aside
  7. Add lemon zest and squeeze lemon to taste. Continue to simmer for 15 minutes then add shredded chicken
  8. Option to add 1 can organic coconut milk (it makes the broth creamier!)

Nutrition Facts:

Calories: 130
Total Fat: 8.5 g
Saturated Fat: 5.2 g
Carbohydrates: 4.5 g
Protein: 9.2 g

 

Thank you to Korr.com for sharing this recipe! You can find the original recipe here!

Avoiding Overtraining with Athletes

Exercise is an important part of a healthy, balanced lifestyle. Creating the habit of a regular exercise routine provides numerous health benefits including an increase fat free mass, lower blood pressure, and help stimulate cognitive function. It’s important to note that developing a safe and effective exercise regimen is key at any age from younger athletes to senior citizens. Poor exercise selection can result in injury, over reaching and over training. So how can you select the right program to avoid over training?

First, let’s define overtraining. Overtraining is the excessive frequency, volume or intensity of training that results in extreme fatigue, illness or injury (which is often due to lack of sufficient rest, recovery, and perhaps nutrient intake). There are two types of overtraining, aerobic and resistance. Aerobic endurance overtraining results predominantly from an excessive volume overload, this relates to cardiorespiratory training (i.e. running, cycling). Training within the appropriate heart rate zone is important for avoiding overreaching or overtraining. Equipment such as a heart rate monitors are great for those exercising at high intensity workloads to assess target heart rate zones and track progress over time.

The second type of overtraining is resistance overtraining. Resistance overtraining primarily results from excessive high-intensity overload; more specifically too many repetitions using heavy weights or too rapid a rate of progression. For prevention of overtraining, an important component would be a properly planned periodization program developed by an exercise physiologist. This type of programming allows the body to adapt to the stress (exercise) that it is being placed under at a safe rate of progression and volume of the workload.

Different types of overtraining (aerobic, resistance) have been reported to have different signs and symptoms, although performance decrements are commonly a key aspect of both. Signs and symptoms of over training are under or impaired performance, fatigue or exhaustion, mood disturbances, apathy, disturbed sleep, loss of appetite and irritability. There is a high degree of variability between individuals with regard to developing overtraining. Training practices that cause some individuals to thrive may lead to overtraining in others. It is critical to have sufficient rest between training days to facilitate the recovery process. The amount of rest, however, depends on the duration and intensity of the training program and should be individualized for each person. Periods of high-volume or high-intensity training (especially in high level athletes) require sufficient recovery.

 

Brandon Ayala, CSCS

What is that Soreness After a Workout?

When you exercise, you are challenging your muscles to perform work by lifting weights or moving your own body weight. By overcoming new exercises or workloads, you create microscopic tears in the muscles. The body’s healing process repairs those tiny muscle tears and rebuilds them stronger so that the next time you perform the same strenuous activities, you are more capable and likely will not experience the same soreness.

That sore muscle feeling that comes after a workout is called Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS) and occurs during the time the body is healing itself. DOMS often sets in about 24-48 hours after performing strenuous activity. DOMS is completely normal to experience after workout; it may be more noticeable when first starting an exercise routine, not working out for a long time, or when varying or incorporating exercises into a regimen. DOMS directly affects the muscles used during the workout period (i.e. after performing squats or lunges, the leg muscles may be sore after).

DOMS is how the body adapts to change, and while it cannot be avoided DOMS, there are things that can be done to help recovery. Although there is no scientific evidence to support speeding up the recovery of DOMS, there are basic things that muscles need to repair:

  • Hydration
  • Protein
  • Carbohydrates

As a general rule of thumb, on a daily basis hydrating with half your body weight in ounces. Then when exercising, increasing that consumption by a glass of water or two. Depending on the intensity of your workout, this may help the recovery time. For example, if you weigh 150 lbs you should drink about 75oz of water per day (which is about 9-10 glasses). Having a 200 calorie snack after your workout that is a mixture of protein and carbs is also ideal for recovery from DOMS. There is no escaping DOMS, so embrace the sore feeling and think of it as a marker that you have put in the work to see changes in yourself.

 

– Corynne Duprey, MS, CSCS