Country Captain Chicken

Here is a great recipe that's a little bit different. It's really tasty during the winter months.

Here's what you'll need:

1 pound boneless chicken breast
1.5 teaspoons curry powder
2.5 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 can (14-16 ounces) stewed tomatoes, with juice
.5 cup raisins
.5 teaspoon salt
.25 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Cut each piece of chicken crosswise in half. Sprinkle the curry powder over both sides. Heat the oil in a large frying pan. Add the chicken and cook over medium heat, turning once, until lightly browned, about 2 minutes per side.

Add the stewed tomatoes, raisins, salt, pepper and 1/3 cup of water. Cover the pan, reduce the heat to med-low and cook until the chicken is white throughout, 3-5 minutes.

Remove the chicken to a serving dish. Boil the sauce until slightly reduced, 1-2 minutes. Pour over the chicken and serve.


This dish goes really well with arugula salad.

Drink your water!

I know. You've heard it a million times. Drink more water. Drink 8 glasses a day. Replace other fluids with water. Blah, blah, blah.

I don't really care if you are sick of hearing it, you need to drink more water. Period. Essentially, water is about as much of a cure-all as is exercise. Dehydration is the NUMBER ONE cause of fatigue. So if your energy is low, drink more water. Don't drink more energy drinks. Your body does not need more sugar and caffeine, trust me.

Here are other symptoms of MINOR dehydration or, simply not drinking enough water:

Extra body weight. People tend to confuse thirst for hunger and eat instead of drink.

Constipation. Without enough fluid you can't get the toxic stuff out of your body.

Low and high blood pressure. Without water blood volume is insufficient to fill all your arteries, veins and capillaries.

Problems with respiratory system. Without enough moisture your mucous membranes cannot filter out the bad stuff from the air you inhale.

High cholesterol. When you cells lose too much moisture your body tries to stop the loss by producing cholesterol.

Headaches and dizziness. Lack of water constricts the blood vessels impeding blood flow to the brain. This also makes blood more likely to pool in your lower extremities and that can cause dizziness and fainting.

The general rule is that you need to drink enough water that your pee should be almost clear or a very pale yellow.

I know it's a pain in the ass but buy a couple cool stainless steel or aluminum water bottles. Fill them up in the morning and vow to finish BOTH of them by the time you leave work. Fill one up again and drink it before you go to bed. If they are 24 oz bottles then that will get you just about enough of what you need. Any other water you happen to drink will just be a bonus. Pop, juice, coffee, tea, wine, beer, etc. Those do not count. If you choose to flavor your water with any lo-cal drink mix that's fine for one of your daily bottles. Your kidneys process flavored water differently then they do regular water. You need to drink plain water. Learn to love it. Don't complain to me that it's boring or that you hate the taste. Water has no taste. Deal with it. You know the benefits of exercise and the reasons you have to get uncomfortable in order to meet your goals. Apply those principles here and just like exercise, drinking water will be a habit.

When I leave the house it's keys, phone and water bottle. If I don't have one of those things with me I don't go anywhere.

PS - Here is a good trick to get yourself to drink more water, if you use it wisely. Take small bites off of a nutrition bar throughout the day. Those bars always make you want to drink water so if you snack on ONE bar throughout the day and drink water after every little bite you will probably drink your daily allotment without even realizing it. Uh, just don't eat bar after bar. One will suffice.

Happy New Year!

I'm back from the holidays, well almost. As you all know this is the time everyone floods the gym with their New Year's fitness goals fresh in their minds. Sad truth is that in about 90 days most of those resolute individuals will have dropped out of their fitness programs.

There are a couple of reasons why this happens but the main reason is lack of results. If they hired a trainer, even if it's just for a couple of sessions, they would be more likely to stick with their program.

My suggestion is to spend the money to meet with a trainer once a week for a couple of months and you will have given yourself accountability, motivation and a clear program to follow. Get that trainer to take your measurements, body fat and weight. You have to know where you are to know where you are going. 'I just want to lose some weight' is an ambiguous goal. Be clear. 'I want to lost 10 pounds of body fat' is a much clearer goal. Set a time to reach that goal. Be specific. If you read my blog regularly you know that I prefer non-aesthetic goals. Instead of setting a goal to lose 10 pounds how about setting a goal to run 3 miles, 3 times a week in 2 months? Your aesthetic goals will be a fantastic benefit of your fitness goal. Break down your larger goal into smaller goals. Using the goal to run 3 miles, 3 times a week decide that during the first week you will run three times a week. Jog for 10-15 minutes. Jog/walk a familiar route. Slowly build the length of time you spend jogging until you are jogging 3 times a week for about 30 minutes. There you go....but be specific with your weekly goals so you feel successful each time you meet one.

Success breeds success and no one was ever successful at reaching a goal by giving up.

No-time, Fat Burning Workout

As I mentioned earlier, try to stick to an exercise schedule throughout the holiday season. Here is a short, challenging workout that can be done anywhere with no equipment.

Jog in place for 2 minutes, easier intensity to get some blood flowing.

Jog with high knees up, pumping your arms, for 2 minutes between each of the below exercises.

Perform a 'prisoner squat' for 15 reps, going as deep as possible. A prisoner squat is executed with your hands on your head and feet shoulder width apart. Squat deeply.

Perform a 'waiter's bow' (or a good morning) for 15 reps. Place your hands behind your back and bow forward from your hips, not your waist.

Perform a step lunge going all the way down to the floor and placing your hands on either side of your foot. Push yourself back up and repeat on the other side. Perform 30 reps, or 15 per side.

Perform a single leg dead lift. Hinging at your hips reach down toward the floor as you lift one leg behind you to hip level. Perform 30 reps, alternation legs.

Perform a back step lunge, alternating legs, for a total of 30 reps.

Perform 15 push-ups

Perform 50 bicycles.

Stretch.

The above workout should take about 20 minutes.

Remember, stick to a routine!!!

Holiday Season Tricks and Tips

As I am heading out to a holiday party I realized that I haven't shared some of my staying lean tips with you! So here they are:

#1 Don't throw all your progress away just because you ate a little too much at a party or dinner!! A lot of people just say 'screw it' and go back to terrible eating habits for the entire month of holiday activities. They often stop going to the gym as well. Why?! Exercise eliviates stress (mother-in-laws anyone?), helps you sleep better and will help control depression which is often felt around this time of year. Why do your think there are so many New Years resolutions involving weight loss? I bet it has a lot to do with the guilt people feel for throwing it all out the window between Thanksgiving and New Years.

#2 Pick three events and eat, drink and be merry! Don't worry about what your eating and drinking. Enjoy yourself and your friends and family. Don't think about low-fat or low-carb or low-anything. It might be your company blow-out party of the year. It might have been Thanksgiving dinner. It might be New Years Eve. Choose three and have some fun!

#3 Set realistic goals when it comes to working out. Don't expect to have as much time to go to the gym as your normally do. Plan to go three times a week for 30-45 minutes and get your butt there! Once your there I bet you'll stay a little longer and I know you'll feel a lot better.

#4 Finally, if your pants feel tighter the day after one of your parties don't yell at yourself! I can almost guarantee that what you feel is a little water weight gain. It takes a lot of extra calories to gain a pound of fat. You can't gain 3 pounds overnight! If the scale says you did, it's water that you are holding, not fat. Eat clean throughout the day, drink a lot of water and go to the gym. Your pants will fit better and you'll be a lot happier.

Now go out and enjoy this time of year it's made for good cheer, not regrets!

Work Out Of The Week November 29th, 2009

15 Minute Workout - Power Surge
For each set perform the exercises back to back without resting between, 10 repetitions each. Perform three rounds of each super set, resting a couple of minutes between sets.

Super Set #1

Plyometric Push-Up
In full push up position lower yourself to the floor then push yourself up with enough force so your hands leave the floor.

Dumbbell Bench Press
Lie on bench with a set of dumbbells and perform a dumbbell chest press.

Super Set #2

Explosive Step Ups
Perform a regular bench step up but explode off the floor and bench. Repeat all on the right and then all on the left.

Alternating Dumbbell Step Ups
Hold dumbbells, step up and down on a bench. Repeat all on the right, then all on the left.

Super Set #3

V-Up
Lie on the floor with legs straight out and arms extended over your head. Jackknife up to a full V sit up, touching hand to shoelaces.

Weighted Sit Up
Lie on the floor, holding a dumbbell at your chest. Perform a regular crunch.

Following the above workout with 30 minutes of cardio will increase your fat loss significantly.

Chicken Florentine

This is one of my very favorite chicken breast recipes and the nutritional value is phenomenal!

Chicken Florentine

1 Package (10 Ounces) frozen spinach
2 Garlic cloves (I used garlic that is already chopped. They sell huge jars at Costco that are very good).
1 pound thinly sliced chicken cutlets (I buy regular chicken breast because it's cheaper and then pound it down so it's thinner).
Salt and pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
3 Tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

1. Thaw the spinach in a microwave on high for 1 to 2 minutes. Drain well. Squeeze to remove as much moisture as possible. Finely chop the garlic.

2. Season the chicken cutlets with salt and pepper. Heat 3 tablespoons of the oil in a large frying pan. Add the chicken and cook over med-high heat, turning, until lightly browned and cooked throughout, 1 1/2- 2 minutes per side. Remove to a plate and cover with foil to keep warm.

3. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil to the pan and reduce the heat to medium. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, until softened and fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in the spinach and cook, stirring, until heated through, about 1 minute. Stir in the cheese and remove from the heat. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

4. To serve, spread the spinach on a platter and arrange the chicken on top. Drizzle any juices from the plate over all.

You really don't need to add anything to this dish. It's a full meal with lean protein and leafy, dark green vegies and the garlic and Parmesan makes it very flavorful.

Enjoy!!