Reasons You May Not Be Losing Weight
Summer is over and you’ve been working your butt off and doing a fantastic job. Have you been trying to lose weight, only to see minimal or even no changes at all? We all know there are no magic overnight methods. With some slight changes to your everyday diet and routine, you’ll be sure to get there.
Below are some common mistakes that you may not realize you’re committing.
1. Skipping breakfast– this may have an adverse effect on your metabolism. Instead of skipping breakfast, be sure to add in something filled with protein and some healthy fats and carbohydrates. For example; eggs, toast, Greek yogurt, or even a Protein shake/smoothie. Give your body the fuel it needs to get the day going.
2. Hydration – simply, you have not been hydrating as much as you think. You should be drinking anywhere from 9-13 8oz cups of water daily. Add even more on your heavy workout days.
3. A little snack here, a little snack there. Those little cheats really add up. You must do without those extra unnecessary calories in order to maintain the weight loss.
4. Alcohol. Just like stated above, unnecessary calories. Those summer drinks added up and the upcoming holiday drinks will to. Don’t let them! When you’re in weight loss mode, those cocktails will most definitely kill the weight loss.
5. Commitment. Your commitment isn’t where it should be. We all slip. It’s how you jump back into the game that counts.
6. Accountability. You’re not holding yourself accountable for all the little slip ups.
It’s all good. Keep plugging away. Normal routines are going to fall back into place. It’s all about what you do from this day forward that counts. You cannot change the past, but you can and will map out your future. One day at a time you/we can and will get back on track. See you at TBBC!!!
Steven Fleischer, TBBC Transformation Coach, NASM CPT, YES
Chicken and Asparagus Crepes
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for the dish
2 1/2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken
1 1/2 cups ricotta cheese
3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
1/4 cup chopped fresh herbs (such as parsley, dill, chives or mint)
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
8 store-bought crepes (about 9 inches each)
1 shallot, sliced
1/2 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into pieces
3/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Butter a large baking dish. Combine the chicken, ricotta, 1/2 cup parmesan, 3 tablespoons herbs, 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in a medium bowl. Spoon about 1/4 cup filling across the lower half of each crepe; roll up to enclose the filling. Place the crepes, seam-side down, in the baking dish. Cover with foil and bake until the filling is hot, about 15 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, melt 3 tablespoons butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the shallot and cook until it softens, about 1 minute. Add the asparagus and cook until just tender, about 3 minutes. Add the chicken broth, lemon zest and the remaining 1 tablespoon herbs and simmer until the sauce is slightly thickened, about 2 minutes. Stir in the remaining 1/4 cup parmesan and season with salt and pepper.
3. Divide the crepes among plates, top with the asparagus and sauce, and sprinkle with parmesan.
Per serving: Calories 405; Fat 24 g (Saturated 14 g); Cholesterol 115 mg; Sodium 984 mg; Carbohydrate 19 g; Fiber 1 g; Protein 26 g
Courtesy of http://ow.ly/AVcHk
Why I Decided to go Bald
It was a very weird feeling. I noticed in some pictures that my hair looked a bit thinner up top. Someone even made a comment walking out of a restaurant (Some friend!). The realization hit me that not only was I most likely going to go bald but also that I was getting older. Some men take losing their hair pretty hard. I was one of them.
One of my clients once told me that he began taking Propecia (name brand for the drug Finasteride) once he noticed his hair thinning. It worked like “magic.” His hair stayed and he even grew some back. I immediately called my doctor for an appointment. He didn’t hesitate to prescribe me Finasteride when I requested it. Life was good again. I was going to keep my hair. Then I filled my prescription and read the pamphlet.
As with most (or all) medications, there were some possible side effects. It first mentioned sexual issues like impotence in a very small percentage of users. For some reason, I wasn’t worried. It was such a small percentage. Then it mentioned the C word. Yup. It said that there may be a chance of developing a “very serious” form of prostate cancer. Wow! Now I was confused. Even if the chances were very slim, would keeping my hair be worth the possibility of a life threatening disease? Had I become that vain?
Dr. Google
This led me to consult the “experts” on Google. While I wasn’t too worried about the sexual side effects initially, I was now! I read reports from people who experienced very negative sexual side effects. What’s worse, they didn’t always subside after coming off the meds.
After giving it a good amount of thought, I decided to stop taking the Finasteride after only a couple of days. While no one reason by itself might sound like a good case against the meds, the combination of the following were more than enough for me…
- Chance of getting a high grade prostate cancer – Apparently it can mask PSA (prostate specific antigen). PSA is a marker for prostate cancer. This may make the diagnosis of prostate cancer less detectable.
- Possible sexual side effects – Although I wasn’t initially worried about this I really didn’t want to take a chance. After all, I’m still in baby making mode!
- Negative impact on muscle building – The reason Finasteride works in preventing hair loss is because it blocks DHT conversion. The problem is since DHT may have some role in muscle building. Unfortunately, these hormone changes don’t occur in a vacuum. As with most things you may have to give something up to gain another. Since I’m in the muscle building business I’m not willing to take that chance.
What’s so great about hair anyway?
I’m not going to say it’s better to be bald than to have hair. However, the whole bald thing has worked out pretty well for guys like Michael Jordan and Bruce Willis.
The TBBC team and I are reading a great book on Mindset right now called, The Magic of Thinking Big by David Schwartz. I highly recommend this book. Anyway, I tried to use the principles I learned in the book and look at the positives of the potential of going bald. Here is what I came up with…
- Different hairstyles – Now that my thinning is barely noticeable I can grow my hair a bit and layer it. If the thinning gets much worse, I can go with a really short cut.
- More money – I will save money by not spending on frequent haircuts or hair products.
- More time – Since I am a productivity nut, I will gain a few minutes by not having to worry about fixing my hair.
- Hats – I love wearing hats but many times I don’t because my hair looks matted when I remove the hat. Without hair this wouldn’t be a problem.
- Tough guy look – Not sure if this is really a benefit but I figured I would throw it in there.:)
A positive seed in everything
The point is that no matter what we go through, it is up to us how we view it. I am going to strive to maintain a healthy lifestyle (e.g. eat lots of fruits and veggies) and hopefully keep my hair. If that doesn’t work out, I’m going to focus on what I do have rather than what I do not.:)
Billy Hofacker, CEO and Owner of Total Body Boot Camp
TBBC Transformation Coach, B.S., NSCA-CPT, FMS Level 1
Asian Chicken Burger
Ingredients:
Cooking spray
1 small carrot
1 small red onion, halved
1 pound ground chicken
1/4 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
1 tablespoon grated peeled ginger
4 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce
3 teaspoons hot Asian chili sauce, such as sambal oelek
8 ounces white mushrooms, thinly sliced
2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
Juice of 1 lime
4 whole-wheat sesame hamburger buns
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Mist a baking sheet with cooking spray. Grate the carrot and 1/2 onion into a large bowl. Add the chicken, panko, 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce, the ginger, 3 teaspoons soy sauce and 1 teaspoon sambal oelek and mix until combined. Shape the chicken mixture into 4 patties and place on the prepared baking sheet. Bake until cooked through, about 20 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, thinly slice the remaining 1/2 onion. Toss with the mushrooms, sesame oil, lime juice and the remaining 1 teaspoon soy sauce in a bowl. Mix the remaining 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce and 2 teaspoons sambal oelek with 1 tablespoon water in another bowl.
3. Warm the hamburger buns in the oven. Serve the burgers on the buns with a drizzle of the hoisin-sambal sauce and some of the mushroom mixture.
Per serving: Calories 360; Fat 14 g (Saturated 3 g); Cholesterol 75 mg; Sodium 1,143 mg; Carbohydrate 40 g; Fiber 4 g; Protein 24 g
TBBC Annual BBQ 2014
Once again, the Total Body Boot Camp Annual BBQ was a great success!! Tons of fun had by all 🙂 Wantaugh Park proved to be the perfect location. Picnic tables, just enough shade and sun, and the water slide that many went to play and cool off in after the festivities 😉
Many thanks to the Powers family – Bill was master chef over on the grill and Kathy was a crowd favorite with her face and body painting skills!! They also supplied us with the corn hole game that kept most of the men occupied that afternoon 😉
Special thanks to Claudine Milioto for (1) bringing that fabulous container of margaritas, and (2) helping fill up the second round of water balloons for the kids games. Do you think there could ever be enough water balloons?? Plenty of winners and prizes at the kids games! Thanks to Billy’s nephew Joe for jumping in on the potato sack race proving that it’s not just about the kids when it’s time for fun 😉
Max Levines “Jalapeno Taco Dip” was again one of the popular items over at the snack table but Jenn Munni’s Quinoa Salad may have become a new TBBC favorite! Thanks to all that brought some dishes, happy to say there were not many left overs 😉
The most anticipated news from the BBQ – King and Queen of Boot Camp for 2014….Drum roll please… Raquel Modica and Izak Gonzalez have taken over the new reign!! It was a tough fight and it was anyone’s game up to the very end but these two proved to be the best of the best of the 2014 challenges! Remember to throw a high five next time you see them at TBBC, trust me, this was not a title won easily!