Wednesday 14 May 2014

Let's get juicy.

Yield: 4 cups
Serves: 2
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 0 minutes

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 bunch kale
  • 1 bunch parsley
  • 1/2 cup wheat grass
  • 1/2 fresh pineapple
  • 1 piece ginger, about the size of your thumb
  • 1 lime
  • 1/2 avocado
  • 1 cup plain lowfat yogurt
  • 1/4 cup organic hemp protein powder with fiber (I use Living Harvest, LivingHarvest.com)

PREPARATION:

  1. Using a juicer, juice kale, parsley, wheat grass, pineapple, ginger and lime. Pour juice into a blender and add avocado, yogurt, and hemp powder. Blend until combined. Pour into a glass and enjoy!

(Thanks to the amazing Tosca Reno for this recipe)

The Flat belly workout.



Try this three times a week. Send me your before and after pictures! 

Tuesday 13 May 2014

Period friendly workouts

Hey guys!

Since a lot of you guys were asking for a period friendly workout, I thought it’d be a good idea to put together a video showing you what you can eat, drink, and do when you’re majorly cramping and can’t move during your menstrual cycle.

Here are some things that help me:
1. Apply heat to your lower abdominal area
2. Drink a lot of water to hydrate
3. Eat bananas for their potassium to ease cramps
4. Drink tea like chamomile or ginger tea

Here’s a yoga inspired routine that you can practice when you’re in pain. Hold each move for 1 min at least!
1. Rag doll
2. Single leg reach
3. Single leg reach and lift
4. Camel
5. Single armed camel
6. Reclining Angle
7. Wide Child’s Pose (grab a pillow!)

Watch the video for an in depth explanation of what each of the above moves does and looks like. Hope this helps you guys a lot! Let me know what other informational videos I can do to help make your life better :)
Happy Cinco de Mayo and have an ah-MAY-zing start to your week!
<3 Cassey

Read more at http://www.blogilates.com/#fhCGPjGjHVMC3yvj.99

Put the Diet Coke down.

I put my hands up.

I LOVE DIET COKE.

Who doesn't? It gives you a quick energy boost, without the calories coming to bite your pert behind later. 

But, are diet fizzy drinks really all they've been hyped up to be? I actually work in marketing, but those damn advertisers still get me every time. It's amazing, once you look beyond the pretty colours, promises of 'low fat' or heathful sounding names, so many of these supposed 'healthy options' are anything but. Special K, I'm looking at you. Just because something has no calories, sugar or fat does not mean that it is a good, clean eat. 

I'm currently on a week off between jobs, and as a self confessed diet coke fiend, I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to put the Diet Coke down. I was not expecting the withdrawal symptoms that I am currently experiencing. Think banging headache, queasy stomach and a general ratty attitude. If this is what not having Diet Coke does to you, then it is definitely time to come off the stuff once and for all.

Not only that, it is important to bear in mind that diet drinks do not make you skinny. In fact, often the opposite is true. 

I will, of course, keep you updated, but if any of you want to come off the diet drinks with me, here are some top tips to keep the diet drink withdrawal to a minimum:

  • Start slow: If you are worried about the fatigue or headache that comes with stopping drinking your diet drink of choice, start by sorting out a schedule, slowly cutting it out so that the change is not too noticeable.  “Small diet tweaks are easier to adjust to, and they can turn this health goal into a permanent, lasting lifestyle change,” says Tom Kersting, Ph.D., author of Losing Weight When Diets Fail.
  • Start your day with protein. Protein increases your body's ability to convert sugar into fuel, which helps reduce cravings, tiredness and other symptoms. Tuck into scrambled eggs and smoked salmon, or a couple of cheeky rashers of bacon to reduce that diet drink fog. 
  • Give yourself a treat. Part of the reason giving up Diet Coke makes people miserable is because a daily treat has suddenly disappeared and nothing good has been added in its place. For the period that you are suffering your diet drink cravings, treat yourself to one of your favourite treats. And a little pat on the back for being so iron willed.
  • Add an extra cup of tea or coffee. According to researchers at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, substituting four ounces of coffee for every 12-ounce can or glass of Diet Coke that you cut out of your diet can prevent those nasty symptoms entirely. Even better, while Diet Coke does nothing whatsoever to improve your health, coffee is a nutrient-rich herb with a long track record of proven health benefits. Sip two or three cups of java daily, and researchers at Nashville’s Vanderbilt University say you’ll cut your risk of diabetes, depression, colon cancer and Alzheimer’s disease by 30 percent or more.
  • Start drinking sparkling water. As well as the caffeine and aspartame, you will be missing the bubbling sensation that your diet drink gives you. For an extra kick, add your favourite fruit juice.
  • Have an evening beverage. Having 125mls of wine, or a pint of beer can but your evening soda cravings by around 25%. Plus, for me it's the only thing that gets rid of that pesky headache.
I hope that helps you stick out your diet drink detox. Let me know how you do! 

Monday 12 May 2014

Confession time...

I've fallen off the fitness and health band wagon.

Over the past month, it's been day after day of wine, carbs, and more carbs. It started with a couple of days where I didn't get a chance to organise my meals due to stress at work, then because of work I started to reward myself with food. Just a little pizza won't hurt right?

Usually I'm all for treating yourself every week or so, but this became everyday.

But hey, the first step to working on a problem is admitting you have one. And as I'm currently between jobs, I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to go back to scratch, get my act together and start the Fit Girl Life with you guys.

I'll be posting everyday, hopefully this'll be a good chance for some of you Fit Girls to start the journey with me! Put down the chips and pick up some good old clean eats.

Tuesday 1 April 2014

Satisfying and Good for you: Huevos Rancheros

Love food that's full of flavour but not calories? Then read on...
Huevos Rancheros

And it is a really great way, if I do say so myself! Huevos Rancheros is to die for. Crispy tortillas, creamy black beans, salty cotija cheese and spicy salsa, all smothered in runny, over easy fried eggs. It is a hard to beat breakfast.
Huevos Rancheros
And is if those things are great as is- the homemade black beans take it over the top.
I also realized while making them, that this would be an absolutely GREAT recipe to make for a lot of people at once- like if you were having a brunch or something. You can make the beans a day or two ahead of time, and just have the salsa and cheese on hand. Then all you have to do is fry tortillas and eggs, which can both be done in batches. Totally simple to make and huge on taste.
Huevos Rancheros
With the weekend here, consider whipping up a batch for your friends or family on Sunday morning! (They would also be great on game day next weekend when the Seahwaks win;)
Huevos Rancheros
OK, this is how you make Huevos Rancheros:
Heat up the black beans.
Huevos Rancheros
In a medium heavy skillet or nonstick pan, fry the tortillas until crispy over medium-high heat, about 2-3 minutes on each side. Set to drain on a paper towel.
Huevos Rancheros
Add the eggs to the pan with the residual oil and cook to desired doneness.
Meanwhile divide the tortillas onto 2 plates, (2 tortillas on each plate).
Huevos Rancheros
Spoon the hot black beans over the tortillas.
Huevos Rancheros
Top them with salsa, cheese and fresh cilantro.
Huevos Rancheros
Put the hot fried eggs on the very top of the dish and season them with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.
Huevos Rancheros

Recipe: Huevos Rancheros

Ingredients

  • 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 4 corn tortillas
  • 2-3 cups of black beans, heated up
  • 4 eggs
  • salsa, cotija cheese and fresh cilantro for garnish.

Instructions

  1. In a medium heavy skillet or nonstick pan, fry the tortillas until crispy over medium-high heat, about 2-3 minutes on each side. Set to drain on a paper towel.
  2. Add the eggs to the pan with the residual oil and cook to desired doneness.
  3. Meanwhile divide the tortillas onto 2 plates, (2 tortillas on each plate). Spoon the hot black beans over the tortillas and top them with salsa, cheese and fresh cilantro.
  4. Put the hot fried eggs on the very top of the dish and season them with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.
Preparation time: 10 minute(s)
Cooking time: 10 minute(s)
Number of servings (yield): 2