This week brought both new challenges and successes.

Challenges included my shoulder issue that I haven’t had for a long time returning to haunt me (it is Halloween week after all!) The shoulder exercises that Jaylin and Ed gave me helped me to properly warm up my shoulder before my workouts so it is actually becoming stronger and not at risk for re-injury. It is the end of the week and my shoulder feels completely normal now. Which is great!

Another challenge was making healthy food choices when I was out and about working and not at home. I made a point to incorporate lean protein into every meal even if it wasn’t something I prepared. I chose the spinach wrap with egg whites when I was forced to eat at Starbucks for breakfast. When I went out to lunch with my friend I chose a garden salad with a side of grilled chicken and dressing on the side.

Celebrating successes too!

Successes included fitting into some of my clothes that had been giving me major muffin top. They are still a bit snug but the muffin is gone. I seem to have lost my midsection first. Now gotta get this booty down!

Another success was working out on a Saturday! Usually I do yoga on Saturdays and take Sunday as my rest day, so all of my cardio and bootcamps are crunched within Monday through Friday. I think it might have a positive impact on my weigh in on Monday!

Looking forward to meeting more of you in bootcamp. Thank you for the kind words of encouragement! I appreciate them! Yesterday marks the 6 month mark until my wedding… Here I come!

Garlic-Basil Halibut

Serves 2, Time 20 min

INGREDIENTS

• 12 ounces fresh or frozen halibut steaks (about 1-inch thick)
• 2 tablespoons snipped fresh basil
• 1 tablespoon macadamia oil
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. Thaw fish, if frozen; rinse and pat dry. If necessary, cut fish into 2 serving size pieces. In a small bowl combine basil, melted butter, garlic, salt, and black pepper. Brush mixture over both sides of halibut.
2. Place fish on the unheated rack of broiler pan. Broil 4 inches from heat for 8 to 12 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with fork, turning once.

NUTRITION

Per serving: 241 calories, 10 g fat, 1 g carbohydrate, 36 g protein

Salmon and Asparagus

Serves: 4, Time: 10 min prep; 12 min bake 450*

INGREDIENTS

• 1 pound fresh asparagus spears, cut into 2-inch pieces
• 1 1/2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
• Course sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
• 1 pound fresh or frozen salmon fillets with skin
• 1 teaspoon finely shredded lemon peel
• 1 teaspoon snipped fresh parsley

DIRECTIONS

1. Place two (1 large and 1 medium) cast-iron skillets or oven-safe heavy skillets in a cold oven; heat oven to 450 degrees F.
2. In a medium bowl combine asparagus and 1/2 teaspoon olive oil; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Brush the remaining 1 teaspoon of olive oil on both sides of fish; sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper.
3. Carefully remove hot skillets from oven. Place fish, skin side down, in the large skillet. Place asparagus in medium skillet. Return skillets to oven.
4. Bake for 12 minutes, or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork and asparagus is crisp-tender.
5. To serve, sprinkle fish with lemon peel and parsley.

NUTRITION

Per serving: 235 calories, 14 g fat, 2 g carbohydrates, 24 g protein

Quinoa and Curried Shrimp

Serves: 4, Time: 20 min prep, 20 min cook, 5 min stand

INGREDIENTS

• 1 pound fresh or frozen large shrimp
• 1 cup quinoa or whole wheat couscous*
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon curry powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 6 ounces fresh pea pods, trimmed and halved lengthwise (2 cups)
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• 3 tablespoons unsweetened light coconut milk
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup snipped fresh cilantro

DIRECTIONS

1. Thaw shrimp, if frozen. Peel and devein; rinse and pat dry. Set aside.
2. To prepare quinoa, rinse in cold water and drain in a fine-mesh strainer.
3. In a medium saucepan bring 1 1/2 cups water to boiling; add quinoa. Return to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and cook for 15 minutes. When all the water is absorbed, remove from heat and let stand for 5 minutes.
4. In a large nonstick skillet heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion; cook and stir about 5 minutes or until tender. Add ginger, curry powder, cumin, and cayenne pepper; cook and stir for 1 minute. Add shrimp and peas, stirring to coat with the spices. Cook and stir about 3 minutes or until shrimp are opaque. Stir in orange juice, coconut milk, and salt; heat through.
5. Serve shrimp mixture with quinoa or couscous. Top each serving with cilantro.
6. To cook couscous: In a medium saucepan bring 1 1/2 cups water to boiling. Stir in couscous; cover and remove from heat. Let stand for 5 minutes.

NUTRITION

Per serving: 432 calories, 9 g fat, 41 g carbohydrates, 33 g protein

Recipes by: Heart Healthy Living

Sure, it’s easy to say don’t eat when you’re not hungry, but let’s be honest, we’ve all dipped into the cookie jar, basket of chips or grazed at a buffet table at times when out stomachs are saying stop. So, what is it that makes you eat when you know you don’t really need it.

10 reasons why you eat when you’re not hungry

Pay close attention to the reasons that sound familiar to you and make a plan to stop the behavior before it starts.

1. Boredom – It’s a Friday night and you’re in the house. You would rather be doing anything other than watching television on a Friday evening. As you flip through the channels you decide to catch up on reality TV or the latest murder mystery. You find yourself wanting a snack to go with your television watching experience. Are you really hungry? Probably not. What’s more likely is that you’re bored and eating gives you a feeling of “doing” something other than being bored. If you notice that you reach for food when you’re bored, plan more activities to keep you occupied. If you happen to be home at times when you’d rather be out, don’t beat yourself up about it. Take advantage of that time to read a good book, catch up on cleaning or even gain a few extra winks of sleep.
2. When there’s one… Ever notice how easy it is to eat when you see others doing the same? Next time you are at a party or other function where food is readily available, take note of how your eating habits may change in that environment. If you realize that you eat more when other eat, make a plan. Making sure you’re full before going to an event with food, taking healthy snacks with you and other tools will help you eat less around others. If you’re truly hungry, then eat. If not, make a plan to avoid the food table and mingle a bit more so take your mind off of food.
3. It’s right there in front of you – Sometimes you’ll want to eat just because the is food in front of you.  Many of us may have grown up with parents and other relatives that did not allow you to “waste” food. If it was there, you were expected to eat it. Good thing is now that you’re an adult and you have the choice on what you want to eat and if you want to eat. You can make our own decisions about our hungry levels and stay true to healthy eating. When you find yourself in situations where you know food will be present, the best line of defense is out of sight, out of mind. Don’t place yourself in front of food. The temptation may be too great to resist. Instead, follow the law of excuse and remove. Politely excuse yourself from the food table and remove yourself to another area.
4. Comfort food – Emotions can make people very prone to eat when they’re not hungry. But, relying on food to quell your emotions does nothing to address the real issue. Routinely using food won’t solve the problem and it will cause more problems in the form of weight gain. Getting to the the bottom of what is making you experience certain emotions is better than turning to food. A great way to track potential emotional eating is to use a food journal. Each time you find yourself reaching for food when you’re not hungry, take note of what you’re feeling in the moment, write it down and over the course of a month see what emotions you are feeding. Then address the emotion.
5. Everybody is doing it - Special occasions usually mean family, friends and food. Nothing is better than celebrating a new baby, marriage, graduation and other life moments that food. And while it’s great to enjoy time with your family and friends, food need not be the star of the show. There’s no need to skip out on the fun in order to avoid the food. Make sure you bring along some healthy alternatives or, when possible, preview the menu ahead of time and make a entree selection before you get to the restaurant. That’s the best way to maintain your diet while enjoying the celebration.
6. Free food – I know… it seems like such a good deal, right? However, just because it’s free of cost doesn’t mean it’s free of calories or consequences. When you’re in a situation where free food sounds too good to pass on, wait about 15 minutes before jumping at the chance. If after 15 minutes you still want to eat, then you’re truly hungry and should do so. If not, then pass. A good deal doesn’t come around often, but in the case of food, it’s better not to indulge if that means you’ll have to spend extra time in the gym working off your meal.
7. Food pushers - My family is notorious for trying to get me to eat more, can you relate? I find that I can detract attention from what I’m eating at family gathering by being really helpful in cleaning up the meal. Once I’m on the move and putting food away, no one notices that I didn’t get a heaping second helping.  Who are your food pushers? Friends? Co-workers? Another solution to gatherings with notorious food pushers is to bring your own healthy dish to share. That way, even if you don’t feel like you can get away from your food pushers, you can ‘be pushed’ into a healthy meal on your own terms.
8. You’re out of energy –  When you haven’t had enough sleep,  you may confuse hunger for actually being tired. During the day, that 3pm hour can wreck havoc on your diet. Stock up on sleep and healthy snacks to get you through the day. Some other alternatives to eating when you’re tired is to take a walk, stretch or drink water. You can never go wrong with any of those ideas.
9. The clock strike food - When the clock strikes 9am, 12pm, 3pm or 6pm, your brain may tell you it’s time to eat. But, if it doesn’t then don’t eat. Just because other people eat at certain times doesn’t mean you have to follow suit. Eat when you’re hungry and not when the clock says it’s time. A good rule of thumb is to eat every few hours.
10. Clear the plate guilt – As mentioned above, some people suffer from thinking that they have to clean their plates. It’s usually a hold over notion from childhood when you were told to eat everything and not waste anything. Some great things about adulthood include driving, making your own decisions and knowing when to say when…you’re hungry that is! A great way to eat less is to prepare your food on smaller plates. And if you find that you’re leaving food on your plate, consider it leftovers for another day. Or, allow yourself to throw it away and not be saddled by guilt that you weren’t that hungry.

Curbing the urge to munch when you’re not hungry is an important way to control your diet. If you see something that resonates above, make a conscious effort to change that and watch your waistline thank you in spades.

Work all your muscles in just 5 minutes in this boot camp workout.

Sarah, a San Diego Boot Camp Instructor, demonstrates how to maximize your workout in just 5 simple moves targeting every muscle for a full body workout.

Set your Gymboss interval timer to 50 seconds and 10 seconds. You’ll do 5 exercises back to back without rest. After 1 round, take a 30 second rest and do it again.

Commit to it!

Each circuit is just 5 minutes – just a tiny part of your day. Even if you do 4 rounds plus your warm up and stretch, you’ll still be done in less than half an hour. Focus on what your doing and make the best of your workout to reap the best rewards.

Boot Camp Exercise #1: Wide push up
Boot Camp Exercise #2: Prisoner squat
Boot Camp Exercise #3: Burpee
Boot Camp Exercise #4: Side lunge
Boot Camp Exercise #5: Low, medium, high abs

Leave a comment and let us know how many rounds you completed.

If you think Halloween is just for kids… think again. From costumes to candy, adults are definitely fond of Halloween festivities. Candy can be found in abundance around Halloween. In fact, I like to think of Halloween as the “unofficial” kick-off to the holiday season. It’s not long after Halloween that we’ll have to call on our willpower to resist the temptations of Thanksgiving and Christmas treats. Setting the tone early, around Halloween time, to practice reigning in your cravings is the key to making your holiday season fun and as guilt-free as possible.

Here are 10 tips to help you resist the urge to give in to a Halloween candy binge:

1. Just enough. If you plan to hand out candy to kids going door-to-door, make sure you buy candy you don’t like. You will avoid binging the inevitable leftovers that you will have. If you have a sweet tooth, like me, and all candy seems too good to resist, make sure you buy in small quantities. It’s better to run out of candy for trick-or-treaters than to be stuck in a stare down with the leftover candy. The candy will win.
2. See no evil candy. If the people at your workplace are ga-ga for candy, then ask that they put their candy in a place that is out of sight. The phrase, “out of sight, out of mind,” is a good way to think about Halloween candy. The less you see it, the less likely you are to crave it.
3. Chew gum. It may not be the greatest substitute for a chocolaty treat, it’s one way to keep you less occupied on eating handfuls of candy from your kid’s bag or your co-worker’s candy dish. In fact, gum has all sorts of uses. Chewing gum can help reduce cravings, relieve stress, and satisfy a sweet tooth among other things.
4. Sweet treats. You can replace candy with other sweet indulgences. Fruit varieties and trail mixes are great alternatives to candy around Halloween. Try keeping a colorful bowl of fruit salad nearby in order to give yourself another snacking option.
5. Indulge…a little. Sometimes, it is a good idea to allow yourself to eat just one piece of candy that you love. The bite size candy abundant at Halloween won’t ruin your diet. But remember, the idea is to satisfy your craving, not put yourself into a candy coma. One piece is all your need to get over the craving hump and keep your diet on track.
6. Hide – don’t seek. Don’t place your candy dish in a very accessible place. If this tip sounds a lot like the tip in number 2 it’s because it is similar. When deciding where you want to place your child’s Halloween goodie bag, you will want to keep it out of reach from not only them, but you as well. Placing candy in a place that you have to inconvenience yourself to retrieve (say, the top of the fridge or on the highest shelf in the kitchen) you won’t be as tempted to graze the bag a few times a day.
7. Walk it off. Sometimes we just need a change of scenery to help us forget about our cravings. Besides, on gorgeous San Diego afternoons, it’s nice to get up and take a walk around the block. Whether you’re at work or home, when you get moving you become less likely to think about whatever food you are craving. If you still want it when you get back, then see tip number 5. Otherwise, consider it crisis averted.
8. Be sure to eat well during the day. When your body doesn’t get enough nutrients and calories, anything looks good to the eye. Instead of diving head-first into a bowl full of sweet goodies, eat a meal or small snack to ward off hunger. Candy will not satisfy your need to eat substantive food and it will create more calories for you to work off in your next workout.
9. Stack your evidence. What that means is when you eat a piece of pint-sized Halloween candy, save the wrapper in plain sight. When you go to eat another and another, you will see just how many you have consumed and that may (and should) prompt you to slow down or cut off eating candy. If you’re really hungry, that’s your cue to eat a meal and not snack on empty calories.
10. Drink, drink, drink. Being dehydrated can cause people to mistake thirst for hunger and overeat. When you want to reach for some Halloween candy, think about the last time you had some water. If it’s been a few hours, then it’s time to pour yourself some water and enjoy.

Halloween doesn’t have to be scary for your diet. By following these 10 simple tips, you can make sure you stay on track with your eating to maximize your workouts!

The challenge continues

This week proved to be a little more challenging in that I was super sore and tired. I did get my workouts completed, including bootcamp, yoga, and cardio. However on Thursday and Friday I left my cardio session after just 30 minutes. I was a little bummed because I didn’t get to burn as many calories but at least I did something.

Change of routine

Changing from the morning boot camps in Hillcrest to the evening boot camps in Scripps Ranch with Sarah has been great! I’m normally a “get it over with” type person when it comes to workouts, so its great to change it up a bit. It also reduces the chance that I will start back with my snacking at night routine! It also makes me able to go to sleep more easily!

Tips from the Bootique Fitness Nutrition Specialist

My eating was different this week since I had my nutrition consultation with Ed! I learned that incorporating more protein in my diet is going to help me get to my goals and make me healthier. I pretty much had a feeing this was the case because I eat about 65% carbohydrates right now. I do love grains! I began eating more egg whites and fish this week. I generally don’t eat meat so it is a little tougher for me to get the protein in. I had one downfall… I made pumpkin cookies with the pumpkins from our ranch. I did eat a few. But I didn’t go overboard and I gave the rest away so I wouldn’t be tempted.

Looking forward to next week’s workouts and to losing even more weight in a healthy way!