So my belly just won't go away. Why? Damn you, why? And I've been thinking about ways to increase the rate of fat loss.
I could go back on the keto diet. But, ugh. Consuming that much fat, cheese, and heavy cream is just not natural. And the inability to eat fruit while on the diet is soul destroying. I can't do it. I just can't.
I've decided the only way to deal with the belly fat, at faster than glacial speed, is to adjust my workouts and meal plans. Two weeks ago, I started meal planning, otherwise known as meal prepping. On a day or two that I have off, I make all our meals for the week. Homemade yogurt and bread for breakfast and snacks, and then three different meals for lunches and dinners. We've agreed not to eat out until November, so that'll force adherence to the meal plan.
Workout-wise, I've been thinking about doubling up on my workouts. A lot of weight lifters do this in general, they'll lift in the morning and do cardio at night, or vice versa. Of course, if you're weight lifting everyday, most people split the area of the body their working on day to day. But for me, I'll probably do strength training with a medicine ball while doing Tabata, HIIT, or kickboxing. Then the second workout will be some sort of cardio or aerobics workout probably running, rowing, or aerobics.
Sunday, September 1, 2019
Thursday, August 29, 2019
Should You Exercise or Run While Sick?
The real answer is: It depends.
Most runners think along the line of, as long as it's an illness that is just affecting your head, then it's ok to run. If the illness travels any lower, like say your lungs or a stomach bug, then definitely take the time to rest and don't do anything strenuous.
We've all been recovering from a summer cold in our household. My husband kept up with his every other day run, and still managed to have at least one long run during the week while he was ill for three weeks. When it got into his lungs, he went to the doctor and quit running. Now, he's over his cold and back at his usual workout schedule.
It's in my lungs at this point, so I haven't run this week. But I did find a fun little low impact aerobics video, that's pretty much 45 minutes of standing ab exercises. So addictive, feel the burn in those arms and abs.
Most runners think along the line of, as long as it's an illness that is just affecting your head, then it's ok to run. If the illness travels any lower, like say your lungs or a stomach bug, then definitely take the time to rest and don't do anything strenuous.
We've all been recovering from a summer cold in our household. My husband kept up with his every other day run, and still managed to have at least one long run during the week while he was ill for three weeks. When it got into his lungs, he went to the doctor and quit running. Now, he's over his cold and back at his usual workout schedule.
It's in my lungs at this point, so I haven't run this week. But I did find a fun little low impact aerobics video, that's pretty much 45 minutes of standing ab exercises. So addictive, feel the burn in those arms and abs.
Tuesday, August 20, 2019
Increasing Protein Intake When You're Sore from Working Out
My husband was getting incredibly sore after workouts or after long strenuous days at work. Days were spent icing his muscles after work, rolling out, and stretching. But the soreness never really went away, although it would die back down for awhile.
I did some reading and decided he wasn't getting enough protein in his diet. I exercise as much as he does and I wasn't excessively sore like him, although admittedly his work is more strenuous than mine. But I eat homemade yogurt in the mornings, and I eat more things that have higher amounts of protein like hummus with vegetables, and soft tofu with crackers and cheese.
So, I started adding higher protein foods to our meals, like brown rice, corn, and beans. Then I purchased hemp seed hearts which have the added bonus of omega 3's and a giant 5 pound container of whey protein powder, both are added to our fruit smoothies. (In all honesty, I did not realize how gigantic a 5 pound container of whey protein really was. It nearly touches the bottom of the cabinets when it sits on the counter.) I also, put hemp seed hearts in my yogurt with fruit, and they are delicious. Much better than roasted hemp seeds, which always made me fear for my dental work.
He has so much energy now and the deep muscle soreness is gone. No more icing, no more begging for hour long messages on a daily basis. Come on. Who has time for that? Plus, my hands were getting tired.
I do think hydration is important when a person greatly increases their protein intake. My husband is always careful about drinking lots of water.
I did some reading and decided he wasn't getting enough protein in his diet. I exercise as much as he does and I wasn't excessively sore like him, although admittedly his work is more strenuous than mine. But I eat homemade yogurt in the mornings, and I eat more things that have higher amounts of protein like hummus with vegetables, and soft tofu with crackers and cheese.
So, I started adding higher protein foods to our meals, like brown rice, corn, and beans. Then I purchased hemp seed hearts which have the added bonus of omega 3's and a giant 5 pound container of whey protein powder, both are added to our fruit smoothies. (In all honesty, I did not realize how gigantic a 5 pound container of whey protein really was. It nearly touches the bottom of the cabinets when it sits on the counter.) I also, put hemp seed hearts in my yogurt with fruit, and they are delicious. Much better than roasted hemp seeds, which always made me fear for my dental work.
He has so much energy now and the deep muscle soreness is gone. No more icing, no more begging for hour long messages on a daily basis. Come on. Who has time for that? Plus, my hands were getting tired.
I do think hydration is important when a person greatly increases their protein intake. My husband is always careful about drinking lots of water.
Sunday, August 18, 2019
Weird Deals You Make with Your Spouse
I've been meal prepping the last couple weeks. It's torture, makes for an exhausting day, and I have no idea how people do it on a consistent basis. They must have a will of iron, and a high stamina for vegetable chopping. The main reason for doing this was to eat healthier during the workweek and to give me extra time, so I can get back into writing.
My disappearance from the blogging world, and writing in general, can be directly attributed to trying to eat healthier and working out. It's a one or the other kind of thing for me because there's no way, I can give up taking care of my kid or going to work.
I was going over the week's menu with my husband, and expressing the idea of eating healthier and eating out less.
"Why don't we make a deal and stop going out to eat altogether?"
I was struck into silence for long moments, but finally returned to my body. "Okay."
"How long?"
"Till November."
Then we shook on it.
So no restaurant or cafeteria food for two and a half months for the two adults. The kiddo will still get to eat school lunches.
If you're curious about last week's menu, it was southwest chicken or herb chicken on a bed of brown rice with 6 mix and match vegetables. The vegetables were air fryer roasted sweet potatoes, air fryer roasted beets, air fryer roasted broccoli, sautéed corn, sautéed sweet peppers, and sautéed zucchini. Each meat got 3 vegetables along with added beans or chickpeas for extra protein.
This week's meal prep was vegetarian. I made a sweet spicy chili tofu on a bed of kamut, ginger sesame tofu with kamut, tomato mushroom cheese omelet with kamut, burritos with tofu crumbles, and vegetarian refried bean burritos with homemade salsa.
My disappearance from the blogging world, and writing in general, can be directly attributed to trying to eat healthier and working out. It's a one or the other kind of thing for me because there's no way, I can give up taking care of my kid or going to work.
I was going over the week's menu with my husband, and expressing the idea of eating healthier and eating out less.
"Why don't we make a deal and stop going out to eat altogether?"
I was struck into silence for long moments, but finally returned to my body. "Okay."
"How long?"
"Till November."
Then we shook on it.
So no restaurant or cafeteria food for two and a half months for the two adults. The kiddo will still get to eat school lunches.
If you're curious about last week's menu, it was southwest chicken or herb chicken on a bed of brown rice with 6 mix and match vegetables. The vegetables were air fryer roasted sweet potatoes, air fryer roasted beets, air fryer roasted broccoli, sautéed corn, sautéed sweet peppers, and sautéed zucchini. Each meat got 3 vegetables along with added beans or chickpeas for extra protein.
This week's meal prep was vegetarian. I made a sweet spicy chili tofu on a bed of kamut, ginger sesame tofu with kamut, tomato mushroom cheese omelet with kamut, burritos with tofu crumbles, and vegetarian refried bean burritos with homemade salsa.
Friday, August 16, 2019
A Frank Conversation About My Health and Weight
Sorry it has been such a long time since I last posted. After my husband was seriously ill last year and hospitalized twice that culminated with an emergency surgery, our family has been looking seriously at our health. As a couple who had a child late in life, I felt longevity was something we needed to focus our energy on.
As a Vietnamese American, waist circumference, BMI, and weight takes on a more heightened meaning. Asians overall have higher rates of diabetes, renal failure due to diabetes, and strokes of any other race in America. Which is due to the manner in which we store fat on our bodies. Asian’s tend to store fat inside their abdominal cavity right around their organs, also known as visceral fat.
Fat acts as an organ by producing an array of hormones. Hormones that are involved with blood clotting, blood pressure, insulin sensitivity, and cell signaling. In this manner, when there is too much fat stored, these hormones can affect other organs negatively.
This means as an Asian American, I need to be at a smaller weight and have a smaller waist circumference than the rest of the population. Non-Asian women with a waist circumference over 35 inches are at high risk for developing heart disease and Type 2 diabetes, whereas Asian women with a waist circumference over 31 inches are at high risk for those same things. That is a 4-inch difference in waist size. Asians also have to stay at much lower BMI to lower their risks for these diseases.
What is considered a healthy weight for the average American would put an Asian American at high risk for heart disease and Type 2 diabetes. Japan has taken steps to adjust their BMI charts to take into account the higher risk at lower BMI’s for their population, they now consider a BMI of over 25 to be obese. In comparison, a BMI of 24 is healthy for non-Asian populations, they are not even considered overweight.
Every 11-pound increase in weight in adulthood for Asians correlates with an 84% increase in their chances of getting diabetes.
What this means for my own health… I have lost 20 pounds this year and now currently weigh 143 pounds, which equaled a loss of 2 inches in waist circumference. For me to lose another 3 inches around my waist to reach a waistline of 31 inches, I would likely need to lose another 30 pounds.
The weight loss has been very slow. Over the course of almost 2 years, I have lost 35 pounds. My spouse actually lost 50 pounds in a month or two during his health crisis, which left him weak and wasted.
Last November, 10 months ago, we joined a gym. To gain strength and at the same time lessen the impact on our joints, we just did an hour on the elliptical every day for two months. After that, we started adding stair stepper and jogging to our exercise routine. At this point, we regularly run on the treadmill 3-4 days a week.
I did experience a couple of setbacks this year with straining a tibialis anterior muscle, which kept me from exercising for 4 weeks. Then I had minor surgery on my foot which laid me up for another 4 weeks.
My husband has made tremendous gains in his strength and endurance. He was running eighteen to twenty miles a week, but has backed off from that pace when his work became more physically strenuous.
Sources:
https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/ee8f/dbb68f1e1470b0333ddef027a5b75344a0da.pdf
https://www.yourhormones.info/glands/adipose-tissue/
https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/obesity-prevention-source/ethnic-differences-in-bmi-and-disease-risk/
As a Vietnamese American, waist circumference, BMI, and weight takes on a more heightened meaning. Asians overall have higher rates of diabetes, renal failure due to diabetes, and strokes of any other race in America. Which is due to the manner in which we store fat on our bodies. Asian’s tend to store fat inside their abdominal cavity right around their organs, also known as visceral fat.
Fat acts as an organ by producing an array of hormones. Hormones that are involved with blood clotting, blood pressure, insulin sensitivity, and cell signaling. In this manner, when there is too much fat stored, these hormones can affect other organs negatively.
This means as an Asian American, I need to be at a smaller weight and have a smaller waist circumference than the rest of the population. Non-Asian women with a waist circumference over 35 inches are at high risk for developing heart disease and Type 2 diabetes, whereas Asian women with a waist circumference over 31 inches are at high risk for those same things. That is a 4-inch difference in waist size. Asians also have to stay at much lower BMI to lower their risks for these diseases.
What is considered a healthy weight for the average American would put an Asian American at high risk for heart disease and Type 2 diabetes. Japan has taken steps to adjust their BMI charts to take into account the higher risk at lower BMI’s for their population, they now consider a BMI of over 25 to be obese. In comparison, a BMI of 24 is healthy for non-Asian populations, they are not even considered overweight.
Every 11-pound increase in weight in adulthood for Asians correlates with an 84% increase in their chances of getting diabetes.
What this means for my own health… I have lost 20 pounds this year and now currently weigh 143 pounds, which equaled a loss of 2 inches in waist circumference. For me to lose another 3 inches around my waist to reach a waistline of 31 inches, I would likely need to lose another 30 pounds.
The weight loss has been very slow. Over the course of almost 2 years, I have lost 35 pounds. My spouse actually lost 50 pounds in a month or two during his health crisis, which left him weak and wasted.
Last November, 10 months ago, we joined a gym. To gain strength and at the same time lessen the impact on our joints, we just did an hour on the elliptical every day for two months. After that, we started adding stair stepper and jogging to our exercise routine. At this point, we regularly run on the treadmill 3-4 days a week.
I did experience a couple of setbacks this year with straining a tibialis anterior muscle, which kept me from exercising for 4 weeks. Then I had minor surgery on my foot which laid me up for another 4 weeks.
My husband has made tremendous gains in his strength and endurance. He was running eighteen to twenty miles a week, but has backed off from that pace when his work became more physically strenuous.
Sources:
https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/ee8f/dbb68f1e1470b0333ddef027a5b75344a0da.pdf
https://www.yourhormones.info/glands/adipose-tissue/
https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/obesity-prevention-source/ethnic-differences-in-bmi-and-disease-risk/
Thursday, March 28, 2019
Roasting Vegetables
I roast vegetables regularly during the winter regularly. Root vegetables like carrots, beets, sweet potatoes are wonderful roasted. Butternut squashes and asparagus are also delicious baked in the oven.
Roasted vegetables make a nice accompaniment to baked fish. For vegetarians they go well added to mashed potatoes, the potatoes can be prepared with olive oil and nut milks. I also like roasted vegetables added to pasta with a sprinkling of parmesan. They actually make a pasta from soybeans that have 50% of the daily protein and 50% of the daily requirement for fiber, plus it's pretty tasty.
Note: The herb and spice blends I use vary day to day. But the ones I most commonly use are salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, marjoram, oregano, basil, turmeric, Penzey's Mural of Flavor, and Penzey's Sunny Paris. Mix and match for your preference, but definitely don't use them all at once.
Beets
Who knew, how delicious beets could be? They are lovely when roasted, especially with a little coconut oil brushed on the baking sheet or jelly roll pan to lend it some sweetness.
I leave the skin on all my vegetables that get roasted. Just be sure to give beets a good scrub with a brush or green scrubby scour pad. Since beets are a hard vegetable, I boil the whole unpeeled beets for ten minutes. Chop the beets into good sized chunks once they're cool enough to handle, but the smaller you chop them the less time you will have to cook them. Put them in a pan that has a little coconut oil or olive oil brushed directly onto the pan. Drizzle olive oil lightly over the top, and then sprinkle on your favorite herbs or spices. I would choose salt, pepper, and a sprinkling of Mural of Flavor. Since I cook beets on the same pan as sweet potatoes, the parboiling helps keep the cooking time the same at 35-40 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
Sweet Potatoes
These lovely root vegetables are amazing roasted, so sweet and delicious. A little coconut oil brushed on the baking sheet or jelly roll pan makes them even sweeter.
The skin gets left on for added fiber and nutrients, just be sure to give them a good scrub. Chop into good sized chunks. Put them in a pan that was brushed with coconut or olive oil, then drizzle olive oil over the top. Herbs and spices aren't necessary because they're pretty flavorful already, but you can sprinkle your favorites for added variation. Marjoram, or Penzey's Sunny Paris, or even basil might be good. Bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 35 minutes.
Asparagus
We eat ton of asparagus since they have such a short window when they're actually in season. For two months we eat asparagus a couple times a week. It's such a happy time.
Snap the tough fibrous bottom ends off the washed asparagus stalks. A one pound package of stalks usually fit well in a 8x8 square Pyrex glass pan. Drizzle lightly with olive oil. Squeeze the juice of half a lemon on them. Sprinkle with your favorite spices and herbs. My choice would be salt, pepper, garlic powder, and Mural of Flavor. Bake for 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit. (Quartered mushrooms also roast incredibly well with asparagus.)
Butternut Squash
A large butternut squash makes a lot of squash cubes. You might only want to bake half the squash this way, the other half will keep well in the fridge covered in plastic wrap. Use the other half for another dish, like Curried Butternut Squash with Lentils. (Recipe will be posted soon.)
Peel, deseed (a spoon makes a good seed and innards scooper), and chop up your squash into cubes. Rub a little olive oil or coconut oil into a pan. Then put them in a single even layer in a baking sheet and drizzle lightly with olive oil. Sprinkle on your favorite seasonings. Butternut squash is very sweet and flavorful, so you may choose to not season at all. Although, salt and pepper would do nicely. Bake at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes.
Carrots
This root vegetable really lends itself to roasting, which brings out its savory and yet sweet flavors.
Cut the carrot into 3-4 inch long strips. It's easier to cut a small section off the carrot to create a flat side, so the carrot doesn't roll around while you're cutting it. Drizzle a little olive oil over the top and sprinkle with some herbs and spices. I might use garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 25-30 minutes.
Roasted vegetables make a nice accompaniment to baked fish. For vegetarians they go well added to mashed potatoes, the potatoes can be prepared with olive oil and nut milks. I also like roasted vegetables added to pasta with a sprinkling of parmesan. They actually make a pasta from soybeans that have 50% of the daily protein and 50% of the daily requirement for fiber, plus it's pretty tasty.
Note: The herb and spice blends I use vary day to day. But the ones I most commonly use are salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, marjoram, oregano, basil, turmeric, Penzey's Mural of Flavor, and Penzey's Sunny Paris. Mix and match for your preference, but definitely don't use them all at once.
Beets
Who knew, how delicious beets could be? They are lovely when roasted, especially with a little coconut oil brushed on the baking sheet or jelly roll pan to lend it some sweetness.
I leave the skin on all my vegetables that get roasted. Just be sure to give beets a good scrub with a brush or green scrubby scour pad. Since beets are a hard vegetable, I boil the whole unpeeled beets for ten minutes. Chop the beets into good sized chunks once they're cool enough to handle, but the smaller you chop them the less time you will have to cook them. Put them in a pan that has a little coconut oil or olive oil brushed directly onto the pan. Drizzle olive oil lightly over the top, and then sprinkle on your favorite herbs or spices. I would choose salt, pepper, and a sprinkling of Mural of Flavor. Since I cook beets on the same pan as sweet potatoes, the parboiling helps keep the cooking time the same at 35-40 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
Sweet Potatoes
These lovely root vegetables are amazing roasted, so sweet and delicious. A little coconut oil brushed on the baking sheet or jelly roll pan makes them even sweeter.
The skin gets left on for added fiber and nutrients, just be sure to give them a good scrub. Chop into good sized chunks. Put them in a pan that was brushed with coconut or olive oil, then drizzle olive oil over the top. Herbs and spices aren't necessary because they're pretty flavorful already, but you can sprinkle your favorites for added variation. Marjoram, or Penzey's Sunny Paris, or even basil might be good. Bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 35 minutes.
Asparagus
We eat ton of asparagus since they have such a short window when they're actually in season. For two months we eat asparagus a couple times a week. It's such a happy time.
Snap the tough fibrous bottom ends off the washed asparagus stalks. A one pound package of stalks usually fit well in a 8x8 square Pyrex glass pan. Drizzle lightly with olive oil. Squeeze the juice of half a lemon on them. Sprinkle with your favorite spices and herbs. My choice would be salt, pepper, garlic powder, and Mural of Flavor. Bake for 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit. (Quartered mushrooms also roast incredibly well with asparagus.)
Butternut Squash
A large butternut squash makes a lot of squash cubes. You might only want to bake half the squash this way, the other half will keep well in the fridge covered in plastic wrap. Use the other half for another dish, like Curried Butternut Squash with Lentils. (Recipe will be posted soon.)
Peel, deseed (a spoon makes a good seed and innards scooper), and chop up your squash into cubes. Rub a little olive oil or coconut oil into a pan. Then put them in a single even layer in a baking sheet and drizzle lightly with olive oil. Sprinkle on your favorite seasonings. Butternut squash is very sweet and flavorful, so you may choose to not season at all. Although, salt and pepper would do nicely. Bake at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes.
Carrots
This root vegetable really lends itself to roasting, which brings out its savory and yet sweet flavors.
Cut the carrot into 3-4 inch long strips. It's easier to cut a small section off the carrot to create a flat side, so the carrot doesn't roll around while you're cutting it. Drizzle a little olive oil over the top and sprinkle with some herbs and spices. I might use garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 25-30 minutes.
Thursday, March 21, 2019
Alternate Day Fasting
For a couple of weeks I fasted on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, which is considered a form of alternate day fasting or intermittent fasting. I think it was a little harder than a straight only water fast, lemon juice fast, or even fruit smoothie fast. At least with those other fasts, a person can ignore food. With an alternate day fast, I still had to plan for the next day's meals.
The first day is usually the worst for most fasts, I just made sure to drink water or coffee whenever I started to feel hunger pangs. It wasn't too difficult, except when people were trying to tempt me with doughnuts or chocolate.
I still exercised on fast days, but it was during the time I was laid up with an injury so couldn't run. It was easier to exercise more on those days because I didn't have to spend time packing breakfast and lunch, or plan an evening meal.
Those two weeks I did calisthenics like crunches, pushups, and tricep dips, or bicycled in the mornings. Right after work I did kickboxing, aerobics, or went to the gym on days I had off.
Normally, my husband and I sometimes do a spring fast to reset ourselves, and get out of bad eating habits we may have developed. It's a way of cleansing ourselves of food addictions. My reasoning is, if I'm not eating saturated fats, red meat, and sugar than I am in essence cleansing my body of those things. We usually embark on fasts for health purposes.
But this time around, it was something I was doing on my own and purely for weight loss reasons. I'm still pretty heavy for my height, and I want to avoid injuries associated with being overweight. Especially, since I want to be able to ramp up my mileage and speed during runs.
As an aside, I wanted to talk about intermittent fasting. It usually refers to eating at only a set time of day. It's a smaller window of time to eat, so it limits the number of calories a person consumes in a day. I know people who just eat once a day as just they way they live, it's not for dieting purposes. But that would be considered a form of intermittent fasting.
The first day is usually the worst for most fasts, I just made sure to drink water or coffee whenever I started to feel hunger pangs. It wasn't too difficult, except when people were trying to tempt me with doughnuts or chocolate.
I still exercised on fast days, but it was during the time I was laid up with an injury so couldn't run. It was easier to exercise more on those days because I didn't have to spend time packing breakfast and lunch, or plan an evening meal.
Those two weeks I did calisthenics like crunches, pushups, and tricep dips, or bicycled in the mornings. Right after work I did kickboxing, aerobics, or went to the gym on days I had off.
Normally, my husband and I sometimes do a spring fast to reset ourselves, and get out of bad eating habits we may have developed. It's a way of cleansing ourselves of food addictions. My reasoning is, if I'm not eating saturated fats, red meat, and sugar than I am in essence cleansing my body of those things. We usually embark on fasts for health purposes.
But this time around, it was something I was doing on my own and purely for weight loss reasons. I'm still pretty heavy for my height, and I want to avoid injuries associated with being overweight. Especially, since I want to be able to ramp up my mileage and speed during runs.
As an aside, I wanted to talk about intermittent fasting. It usually refers to eating at only a set time of day. It's a smaller window of time to eat, so it limits the number of calories a person consumes in a day. I know people who just eat once a day as just they way they live, it's not for dieting purposes. But that would be considered a form of intermittent fasting.
Monday, March 11, 2019
Irish Soda Bread
A very delicious and yet wholesome bread. Dense, yet soft, with just the right amount of moisture. I used to make this all the time when we lived in Oregon, but I lost the recipe in the move. It's taken a while to adapt something that is closer to what we enjoy.
I usually include seeds or nuts like sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, chopped walnuts, chia seeds, etc. I would definitely substitute ground flax seeds for rolled oats, if our kiddo wasn't allergic to flax.
*Notes on substitutions are included at the end.
This has been published on both my exercise and gardening blogs.
Irish Soda Bread
Makes: 1 large round loaf
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Bake time: 40 minutes
Dry ingredients:
2 cups flour
1 cup wheat flour
3 tbsp. butter, sliced into small pieces
1 tsp salt
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup wheat bran
1/4 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup wheat germ
1/3 cup seeds or chopped nuts
Wet Ingredients:
1 large egg
1 cup milk
3/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
The wet ingredients just have to equal 2 cups, if you're going to do substitutions.
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with parchment.
2. Mix the two flours in a large bowl. Add the butter to the flours, rub the butter into the flours with your fingers until incorporated. Mix in the rest of the dry ingredients.
3. In a 2 cup measuring cup, add the egg, yogurt, and milk until you reach 2 cups. Mix the wet ingredients well, and then incorporate into the dry ingredients. The dough will be fairly wet.
4. Dust the counter generously with flour, and scrape the dough out of the bowl with a spatula. Sprinkle wheat flour on top of the dough and with floured hands, quickly work the dough on the counter into a round. I just roll the edges of the dough under with both my hands to clean it up a bit. I like a rustic loaf, so I don't spend too much time shaping the dough.
5. Place the dough on the parchment lined baking sheet. Press on x onto the top of your round loaf with a knife, it's not necessary to actually cut into the dough. Bake for 40 minutes at 425 degrees Fahrenheit.
6. The loaf will be a dark golden brown and should sound hollow when you thump it. I would give it an hour cooling before cutting into it. Great toasted and served with butter and jam, hummus and cucumbers, or with mustard and thinly sliced extra sharp cheddar.
*Notes: Baking powder can be substituted for baking soda, but you'll need to use at least twice as much. It is important to use fresh baking powder in humid environments as the humidity in the air can already have activated it somewhat, making it less potent.
Baking soda needs an acid to activate, which is why buttermilk can be substituted for the yogurt and milk. For vegans 2 tbsp lemon juice and 1 3/4 cups nut milk can be substituted for the yogurt and milk.
Instead of an egg, vegans can use 1 tbsp. ground flax seeds in 1/4 cup water or 1 tbsp. chia seeds in 1/4 cup water. Although the chia seeds will need to be soaked for at least 15 minutes, including a minute of swirling now and again.
If you use sunflower seeds, they will turn a lovely dark forest green when they come into contact with different acidic and basic elements of the dough. It's a very interesting aspect of food chemistry.
I usually include seeds or nuts like sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, chopped walnuts, chia seeds, etc. I would definitely substitute ground flax seeds for rolled oats, if our kiddo wasn't allergic to flax.
*Notes on substitutions are included at the end.
This has been published on both my exercise and gardening blogs.
Irish Soda Bread
Makes: 1 large round loaf
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Bake time: 40 minutes
Dry ingredients:
2 cups flour
1 cup wheat flour
3 tbsp. butter, sliced into small pieces
1 tsp salt
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup wheat bran
1/4 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup wheat germ
1/3 cup seeds or chopped nuts
Wet Ingredients:
1 large egg
1 cup milk
3/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
The wet ingredients just have to equal 2 cups, if you're going to do substitutions.
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with parchment.
2. Mix the two flours in a large bowl. Add the butter to the flours, rub the butter into the flours with your fingers until incorporated. Mix in the rest of the dry ingredients.
3. In a 2 cup measuring cup, add the egg, yogurt, and milk until you reach 2 cups. Mix the wet ingredients well, and then incorporate into the dry ingredients. The dough will be fairly wet.
4. Dust the counter generously with flour, and scrape the dough out of the bowl with a spatula. Sprinkle wheat flour on top of the dough and with floured hands, quickly work the dough on the counter into a round. I just roll the edges of the dough under with both my hands to clean it up a bit. I like a rustic loaf, so I don't spend too much time shaping the dough.
5. Place the dough on the parchment lined baking sheet. Press on x onto the top of your round loaf with a knife, it's not necessary to actually cut into the dough. Bake for 40 minutes at 425 degrees Fahrenheit.
6. The loaf will be a dark golden brown and should sound hollow when you thump it. I would give it an hour cooling before cutting into it. Great toasted and served with butter and jam, hummus and cucumbers, or with mustard and thinly sliced extra sharp cheddar.
*Notes: Baking powder can be substituted for baking soda, but you'll need to use at least twice as much. It is important to use fresh baking powder in humid environments as the humidity in the air can already have activated it somewhat, making it less potent.
Baking soda needs an acid to activate, which is why buttermilk can be substituted for the yogurt and milk. For vegans 2 tbsp lemon juice and 1 3/4 cups nut milk can be substituted for the yogurt and milk.
Instead of an egg, vegans can use 1 tbsp. ground flax seeds in 1/4 cup water or 1 tbsp. chia seeds in 1/4 cup water. Although the chia seeds will need to be soaked for at least 15 minutes, including a minute of swirling now and again.
If you use sunflower seeds, they will turn a lovely dark forest green when they come into contact with different acidic and basic elements of the dough. It's a very interesting aspect of food chemistry.
Saturday, March 2, 2019
Foam Rolling or Rolling Out
Have you heard of it? Because you know... Everyone's doing it.
I'm fairly late to foam rolling, which has been around for years. Everyone I mention it to, are like: Oh yeah, a foam roller. I've got one. Then why haven't you mentioned it to me? I could've really used it, when I was telling you about my leg pain weeks ago.
It's a solid cylinder of dense foam that varies in length from 18 inches to 36 inches. Their diameter is larger than I would expect, at 6 inches. It's a way of massaging yourself on the floor, using body weight, by rolling various body parts on top of it. I only use it on my legs for the calves, quadriceps, iliotibial band, tensor fascia latae, and the soleus muscle. (It was probably the soleus muscle I strained, along the medial border of the tibial shaft.) Rolling on foam doesn't really work for my hamstrings, a harder surface like a PVC pipe would probably work better. One thing to note, is to not roll your joints, like your knees.
I did go to the doctor, just to make sure it wasn't something serious. He told me to stop running for a week or two, take an anti-inflammatory like ibuprofen, and ice it. He also said it was ok to continue rolling out.
I'm fairly late to foam rolling, which has been around for years. Everyone I mention it to, are like: Oh yeah, a foam roller. I've got one. Then why haven't you mentioned it to me? I could've really used it, when I was telling you about my leg pain weeks ago.
It's a solid cylinder of dense foam that varies in length from 18 inches to 36 inches. Their diameter is larger than I would expect, at 6 inches. It's a way of massaging yourself on the floor, using body weight, by rolling various body parts on top of it. I only use it on my legs for the calves, quadriceps, iliotibial band, tensor fascia latae, and the soleus muscle. (It was probably the soleus muscle I strained, along the medial border of the tibial shaft.) Rolling on foam doesn't really work for my hamstrings, a harder surface like a PVC pipe would probably work better. One thing to note, is to not roll your joints, like your knees.
I did go to the doctor, just to make sure it wasn't something serious. He told me to stop running for a week or two, take an anti-inflammatory like ibuprofen, and ice it. He also said it was ok to continue rolling out.
Wednesday, February 27, 2019
Cardio for Weightloss
Don't get me wrong. I enjoy weightlifting, free weights or weight machines. If you're going to do heavy lifting, I would suggest a nice 30 minute warm up. My choice would be the bicycle, treadmill, or jumping rope. And stretch between switching exercises, especially when you're doing arms.
But when it comes to weight-loss, it's cardio all the way for me. I gain mass too easily to start out with weights. Even now, my biceps are gigantic just from carrying around a small child occasionally.
So, when I started going to the gym after years of being out of shape, I started out on the elliptical. Mainly because I'm overweight, and it's low impact and easier on the joints, while still good for building up muscle and endurance.
A light stretch before exercising is always good practice. And then a more involved stretch after your workout is excellent for increasing mobility and flexibility, since you'll be warmed up and able to stretch more efficiently. I use a stretching chair at our gym, plus additional stretches for the calves and quadriceps.
My goal currently is to build up strength and endurance. Either of these can be achieved by exercising longer or exercising harder, or doing both. Although, a person new to exercising, probably shouldn't do one type of cardio machine for longer than an hour because it invites injury through repetitive motion. Even less time should be spent on one exercise if it's high impact and you're doing it on a daily basis.
It takes time to build up a good muscle base that can take the longer and harder workouts. I actually hurt myself during a hour long run. Just pushed too hard. Ended up straining a calf muscle, which I stupidly continued trying to run on for a couple of weeks.
I took last week off from running and started using the foam roller to try to work out the cramp. The stair stepper and rowing machine have been dear friends during this period, but I still miss running terribly. The burn in the lungs is something else. Hyper dance aerobics with lots of jumping and kicks doesn't really come close. Although, combining kickboxing and burpees almost gets me there.
I think part of my problem is the amount of weight I'm carrying around on my frame. It's too much for how hard I like to exercise. I've been researching intermittent fasting and alternate day fasting. My husband and I normally do a long fast in the spring. But supposedly intermittent/alternate fasting doesn't contribute to muscle loss, the same way straight fasting can.
But when it comes to weight-loss, it's cardio all the way for me. I gain mass too easily to start out with weights. Even now, my biceps are gigantic just from carrying around a small child occasionally.
So, when I started going to the gym after years of being out of shape, I started out on the elliptical. Mainly because I'm overweight, and it's low impact and easier on the joints, while still good for building up muscle and endurance.
A light stretch before exercising is always good practice. And then a more involved stretch after your workout is excellent for increasing mobility and flexibility, since you'll be warmed up and able to stretch more efficiently. I use a stretching chair at our gym, plus additional stretches for the calves and quadriceps.
My goal currently is to build up strength and endurance. Either of these can be achieved by exercising longer or exercising harder, or doing both. Although, a person new to exercising, probably shouldn't do one type of cardio machine for longer than an hour because it invites injury through repetitive motion. Even less time should be spent on one exercise if it's high impact and you're doing it on a daily basis.
It takes time to build up a good muscle base that can take the longer and harder workouts. I actually hurt myself during a hour long run. Just pushed too hard. Ended up straining a calf muscle, which I stupidly continued trying to run on for a couple of weeks.
I took last week off from running and started using the foam roller to try to work out the cramp. The stair stepper and rowing machine have been dear friends during this period, but I still miss running terribly. The burn in the lungs is something else. Hyper dance aerobics with lots of jumping and kicks doesn't really come close. Although, combining kickboxing and burpees almost gets me there.
I think part of my problem is the amount of weight I'm carrying around on my frame. It's too much for how hard I like to exercise. I've been researching intermittent fasting and alternate day fasting. My husband and I normally do a long fast in the spring. But supposedly intermittent/alternate fasting doesn't contribute to muscle loss, the same way straight fasting can.
Monday, February 25, 2019
I'm Off the Keto
I did end up losing twenty pounds on the keto diet after just a couple of months, but it's just not a long term solution for me. It was unbearable missing out on all the fruit.
And being Vietnamese, it was really hard eating that much meat, cheese, avocadoes, and eggs on a regular basis.
But the diet did help get rid of my sugar cravings. No more late night sweets with my tea. No more deserts period. We actually have ice cream in the fridge, which only the kiddo eats. When I do end up eating a donut or piece of cake, it's strangely disappointing.
Mainly, I'm just trying to eat healthier and exercise on a regular basis. My husband and I eat salads everyday, as well as fruit. On the weekends we make fruit smoothies.
And being Vietnamese, it was really hard eating that much meat, cheese, avocadoes, and eggs on a regular basis.
But the diet did help get rid of my sugar cravings. No more late night sweets with my tea. No more deserts period. We actually have ice cream in the fridge, which only the kiddo eats. When I do end up eating a donut or piece of cake, it's strangely disappointing.
Mainly, I'm just trying to eat healthier and exercise on a regular basis. My husband and I eat salads everyday, as well as fruit. On the weekends we make fruit smoothies.
Friday, February 22, 2019
A Little Update on Life and My Exercise Regimen
I haven't been posting for awhile because my husband had a major health scare last year. He was hospitalized twice last summer and had to have emergency surgery at one point. He lost 60 pounds and all of his muscle mass, and ended up fairly frail. He was actually down to his high school weight, but without any of the musculature.
Since we have a young child, we found it to be a frightening experience. We've been making massive changes in our lives, trying to be healthier and getting strong again.
In November 2018 I talked him into joining a gym. The first month and a half we did the elliptical everyday, with some rowing and stair stepper for variation, just to build up some strength and endurance while doing low-impact exercise.
I mainly run now on the treadmill 3-5 days a week. While my husband alternates running days with the elliptical to give his bad knee a rest.
We are both feeling stronger. Life is good.
Since we have a young child, we found it to be a frightening experience. We've been making massive changes in our lives, trying to be healthier and getting strong again.
In November 2018 I talked him into joining a gym. The first month and a half we did the elliptical everyday, with some rowing and stair stepper for variation, just to build up some strength and endurance while doing low-impact exercise.
I mainly run now on the treadmill 3-5 days a week. While my husband alternates running days with the elliptical to give his bad knee a rest.
We are both feeling stronger. Life is good.
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