Lynbrook | New Hyde Park | NY

weight loss

What Does It Mean to Be Actively Inactive?

What does it mean to be actively inactive? Sounds like silly concept, but the fact of the matter is, there are a lot of people who are actively inactive. This concept is based off people that might come to the gym for a half hour or hour and work hard and then go home or to work and be very sedentary.

When you work so hard at the gym, you really want to take advantage of that hard work and continue in everyday life being more active.

Some things you can incorporate into your everyday lives are pretty simple:

  • Achieve that 10,000 step goal per day.
  •             +you can do this by parking a little further away
  •             +taking stairs rather then elevator or escalator
  •             +setting a timer at your desk so you get up every hour
  • Changing your lifestyle to more active down time activates like hiking and gardening. This is the perfect time of year to go outside!

There are 168 hours in a week and if you spend only 1 or 2 hours during the whole week exercising and the rest not very active then your still left with 166-167 hours per week you’re missing out on physical activity. We obviously have to take into account sleep and important rest time, but when you decide to change your lifestyle is when exercise and eating right all fall into place and you see the best results!

 

By Corynne Duprey

Recipe: Garden Vegetable Frittata

Total: 45 min
Prep: 20 min
Cook: 25 min
Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for drizzling
  • 5 small red potatoes, thinly sliced
  • 1 bunch green onions, trimmed and sliced
  • 1 cup grape tomatoes, sliced
  • 1 cup baby spinach, torn
  • 1 clove garlic, crushed
  • 8 eggs
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil, plus more for garnish
  • 1 cup shredded Asiago cheese, plus more for garnish
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
  2. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the sliced potatoes to the skillet, saute for about 6 to 8 minutes, until tender but firm. Remove the potatoes from the skillet. Add another tablespoon olive oil, and add the green onions, tomatoes, spinach, and garlic. Saute for an additional 1 to 2 minutes or just until the spinach is wilted. Season the vegetables with salt, and pepper.
  3. In a medium bowl, beat together the eggs, basil, cheese, salt, and pepper. Pour into the skillet over the vegetables. Reduce heat to medium-low and scramble the eggs for 1 minute. Return the potatoes to the skillet. Cook for an additional 2 to 3 minutes, or just until the eggs start to set around the edges. Drizzle olive oil around the edge of the pan to ensure easy removal.
  4. Finish cooking in the oven for an additional 10 to 12 minutes, until the eggs have completely set in the center. Serve straight out of the skillet, or flip onto a serving plate. Garnish with shredded Asiago cheese and fresh basil.

 

 

Original recipe from the Cooking Channel can be found here!

 

Recipe of the Week: Spinach Harvati Pizza

Prep Time: 8 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

 Ingredients:

  • 6 Whole Wheat Pita Bread Pockets
  • 1 10oz box of Frozen Spinach, prepared
  • 1 Medium Red Pepper, sliced
  • 4oz package of Havarti Cheese with Dill, grated (you can find at Trader Joes)

 Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 400*.
  2. Place pitas on sprayed baking sheet. Top with spinach, cheese, and peppers.
  3. Heat until cheese is bubbly, about 5-7 minutes.

Nutrition:

Serving size: 1 Pita

Calories: 290, Carbohydrates: 47g, Fat: 8g, Protein: 14g, Sugar: 1g

 

 

 

What’s my RMR? More importantly, what is an RMR?

Okay, what is an RMR? Why is it important? Is it the ‘secret ingredient” to help put on muscle or lose weight? Let’s start from the top and work our way in.

RMR is an acronym for Resting Metabolic Rate. Your RMR is a sum of all the calories your body burns in order to keep itself alive; i.e. heart beating, breathing, and digesting food. On a surface level, that’s it. Your RMR will not be all the calories you burn in a day because you also have to factor in your daily activities. These are going to be everything else you need to do, such as walking, the gym, laundry, brushing teeth… you get the point.

What factors influence your RMR? Can it be changed?

The RMR is completely unique to you. It is influenced by things like body composition, height, weight, gender, muscle mass, and age. A bigger person, with more muscle mass will tend to have a higher RMR than someone who may be shorter, lighter and have less muscle mass. There are also ways to change your RMR, for example, losing weight (both fat and muscle) will yield a lower RMR while putting on muscle will increase your RMR (how much energy you burn).

Is my RMR the golden ticket to changing my body composition?

Not entirely. There are many calculators online you can use to find an RMR, but the numbers vary and may not always be accurate. At Peak, we have a calibrated metabolic cart that will calculate your RMR more accurately. Once you’ve completed an RMR, how can this information be used? Now is when you contact a health professional to move forward with a caloric range based on your future goals. Utilze this information in conjunction with your nutrition and exercise plans. Put in the effort and stay consistent toward your goals to feel better and healthier!

 

 

By Matthew Rhodes, MS

 

 

Recipe of the Week: Spicy Chicken Sweet Potato Bowls

Breaking down some easy meal prep with healthy protein and vegetables to set you up for a successful week of meals. All you need are 3 big sheet pans + 45 minutes = healthy meals for a week!

Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 45 minutes
Yields: 6-8 servings

INGREDIENTS:

  • 2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into small pieces
  • 3 tablespoons spicy seasoning mix, such as chili lime
  • a few tablespoons of olive oil
  • 3 sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
  • 5-6 cups broccoli florets (or broccolini)
  • coarse sea salt and freshly cracked pepper
  • avocado / hummus / lemon juice / chives / olive oil for serving

INSTRUCTIONS:

  1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Toss the chicken pieces with the spices and a quick stream of olive oil. Stir to combine; store in the fridge for about 30 minutes while you prep other ingredients.
  2. Arrange the vegetables on their own sheet pans (preferably ones with edges to catch drips, etc.). Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Arrange the chicken on a separate sheet pan.
  3. Bake all ingredients for 12-15 minutes. Remove the broccoli and chicken. Stir sweet potatoes and roast another 15 minutes or so.
  4. Done! Divide your servings out into containers and be happy you have meal starters ready for the week!

 

This recipe is from Pinch of Yum and can be found here!

Recipe of the Week: Curried Chicken & Rice Soup

Total: 1 hr 15 min
Prep: 20 min
Cook: 55 min
Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients:

  • 1 bone-in chicken breast (about 1 1/2 pounds), halved
  • 2 medium carrots, sliced diagonally into 2-inch pieces
  • 1 bay leaf
  • Kosher salt
  • 6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 large onion, very thinly sliced
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons Madras curry powder
  • 1/3 cup jasmine rice
  • 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh mint
  • 3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
  • 1 lemon, cut into wedges

Directions:

  1. Combine the chicken, carrots, bay leaf and a pinch of salt in a medium saucepan. Add 3 cups broth and bring to a boil; immediately reduce the heat to low, cover and cook until the chicken is just firm, about 20 minutes.
  2. Meanwhile, heat the butter in another saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the onion, sugar and 1 teaspoon salt; cook until the onion is soft, 5 minutes. Add the curry powder and cook for 1 minute. Add the rice and the remaining 3 cups broth. Increase the heat to medium, cover and simmer until the rice falls apart, 15 to 20 minutes.
  3. Remove the chicken from its broth; discard the skin and shred the meat into pieces. Return the shredded chicken to the same broth.
  4. Puree the rice mixture with an immersion blender until smooth (or use a regular blender, then return to the pan). Pour in the shredded chicken and broth, stirring gently to combine; bring to a simmer. Toss in the chopped herbs and serve the soup with lemon wedges

 

Original recipe from the Food Network can be found here!

Recipe of the Week: Zucchini Enchiladas

Total: 1 hr 5 min
Active: 35 min
Yield: 4 servings (3 enchiladas per serving)

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 4 scallions, sliced (white and green parts separated)
  • 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
  • 1 tablespoon chili powder
  • 3 cups shredded rotisserie chicken (skin discarded)
  • 1 1/2 cups salsa (not chunky)
  • 1 cup shredded Mexican blend cheese
  • 3 to 4 medium zucchini
  • Several dashes chipotle hot sauce, plus more for serving, optional
  • 2 tablespoons sour cream

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
  2. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the scallion whites and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until soft, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle in the chili powder and cook, stirring, until the scallions are coated and the oil is brick red, about 1 minute. Remove from the heat and stir in the chicken, 1/2 cup of the salsa and 1/2 cup of the cheese. Set aside.
  3. Halve the zucchini lengthwise and arrange cut-side down on a work surface. Use a Y-shaped vegetable peeler to shave off ribbons the entire length of each zucchini and as wide as possible (the first few may be too skinny). Make 36 zucchini ribbons total.
  4. Lay out 3 ribbons, slightly overlapping to make a rectangle (think of this as your “tortilla”). Pile about 1/4 cup of the chicken mixture down along one of the short ends of the zucchini tortilla and then roll up to enclose the filling. Put in a 2- to 3-quart baking dish. Roll up the remaining zucchini ribbons and filling and arrange in the dish. Top the rolls with the remaining 1 cup salsa. Add several dashes of the hot sauce and sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup cheese.
  5. Bake until the cheese is melted and the filling is hot, about 25 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes. Thin the sour cream out with a little water and drizzle over the enchiladas. Sprinkle with the reserved scallion greens and serve with more hot sauce (optional).

 

The original recipe from the Food Network can be found here!

 

Strength Training with Orthopedic Limitations

 

Strength and conditioning and physical therapy go hand-in-hand in the rehabilitation process, but they are often seen as separate or opposing entities. Physical therapy helps individuals to recover from injuries, surgeries, impairments with the use of manual therapy (massage, myofascial release, joint traction etc.), electrotherapy (used for pain relief and passive muscle activation), and the implementation of an exercise program (depending on the severity of the injury/impairment). Most patients enjoy the benefits of the manual therapy and hands-on treatment from the therapist and feel better after relaxing with ice and electric stimulation. However, building the strength required to return to daily activities and beyond comes from performing resistance exercises with periodical progression.

Injuries, surgeries, and diseases leave us weakened and/or physiologically imbalanced. The initial focus following a diagnosis is to alleviate the impairment, enhance tissue repair, and improvement of range of motion. When appropriate, basic therapy exercises can be progressed by adding resistance to increase overall strength and correct imbalances. Both physical therapy for injured or orthopedically limited population and strength training for healthy individuals use the same principle of progressive overload to achieve the common goal of strength improvement.

Outside of the physical therapy office, individuals should continue to follow a resistance training program to continue the recovery process and make improvement even beyond where they were pre-injury. Although it is important to isolate a single muscle or muscle group during the recovery process, total body and bilateral exercises should be performed to prevent further imbalances and to improve overall fitness. Building strength in the muscles surrounding a joint can lead to less pain in joints during certain activities. Strengthening opposing areas of the body and learning better techniques/ movement patterns can lead to better habits that will aid in future injury prevention.

 

By David McCalla, CSCS