Recipe of the Week – Lemon Blueberry Protein Bars

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Try these delicious Lemon Blueberry Protein Bars for a healthy, on the go snack.

Ingredients

  • 1 c. oat flour
  • ½ c. vanilla protein powder
  • ¼ tsp. salt
  • ½ tsp. baking soda
  • 3 packets single-serving Crystal Light lemonade
  • zest of 1 lemon or 1 tsp. lemon extract
  • 4 egg whites
  • ¼ c. granulated sugar or ½ c. Xylitol (for low-sugar option)
  • 1 c. unsweetened applesauce
  • ½ c. unsweetened almond milk
  • 1 pint fresh blueberries

 

Directions

  1. In a large bowl, whisk together oat flour, protein powder, salt, baking soda, and Crystal Light.
  2. In another large bowl, whisk together lemon zest, egg whites, sugar, applesauce, and almond milk.
  3. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, and stir until just combined.
  4. Fold in the blueberries.
  5. Pour batter into a greased 8-inch square pan.
  6. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.
  7. Cool completely. Cut into bars.
  8. Store in the refrigerator!

*Recipe Source: http://thegoldlininggirl.com/2017/05/lemon-blueberry-protein-bars/

 

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Strength vs. Cardio

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If you only have time for one or two workouts a week, they have got to be strength.

Why “Strength” over “Cardio”?

Your muscles are the powerhouses of the metabolism and the key to living a vibrant, youthful life, no matter what your age may be.

So why “Strength” over “Cardio”?

There is a Hierarchy of Fitness and “strength” reigns as King, while “cardio” plays the role of a mere peasant. Strength training increases your work capacity to improve the ease at which you can perform daily activities. Strength training will stimulate your body to burn more calories in the hours after your workout than cardio does. A strong body is a youthful body and will help to make you look years younger than you really are. Strong bodies move well and experience less injuries.

While cardio on the other hand slows the bodies metabolism over time, as the body adapts easily to this type of exercise. Cardio does very little to increase work capacity, so while you can run 10 miles easily, carrying a suitcase up a flight of stairs will be exhausting.

Worse yet, excessive cardio will actually age the body due to the oxidative stress it places on the body, as well as and not promote an injury resistent body.

Focus on getting your strength workouts in each week, once you have done three you can still go for a short run or two if you really enjoy your cardio. Keep this order and you will get amazing results and feel wonderful.

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4 Diet Killers

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4 Diet Killers

While there are many things that can wreck clean eating these four tend to wreck it without you realizing it.

Agave Nectar – Even though it is a “natural” sweetner agave nectar has been shown to derange liver function and promote obesity. The main reason is because it contains the highest amount of fructose. Even more than high fructose corn syrup.

Gluten Free Snacks – Today it is common to walk down any grocery store aisle and find gluten-free Oreo’s, gluten-free Pop Tarts, you name it. Just because a snack food is gluten-free doesn’t mean it is healthy.

Fat-Free – When fat is removed from a product taste is usually removed. So in order to make up for taste something else has to be added typically sugar, salt, flour, food thickeners, and other food additives. All fat is not bad and the body actually needs fat to function properly. Naturally occurring fat is what you want to eat, the man-made franken-fats are what you want to avoid.

Stevia – Many of the sweetners on the market that contain Stevia, claim that it is natural. But, in order for it to be made into a sugar it has to be processed and have other things added, like sugar alcohols. There is also evidence that artificial sweetners, which includes stevia products, contribute to obesity.

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PNF Member – Ken R.

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A Member’s Story…

“I just celebrated my three year anniversary here at Pittsburgh North Fitness and what I can tell you is that the workouts are so different, so unique….they really give you an effective workout. The trainers are great and I’ll tell you one thing if come here you will feel it, but you will look great!” – Ken R.

 

Never Bulk Up Again

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If you are afraid to lift weights because you are afraid of bulking up, you need to look at how you eat.

Women need to lift and need to lift heavy weight. Lifting doesn’t not bulk up women; it is poor choices that bulk up women when they lift. Or as Dwight Schrute from the Office puts it, “False, it’s not lifting weights that makes women bulky. It’s eating cupcakes that makes women bulky.”

As much as you may want to believe that you can go out Friday and Saturday night and eat and drink whatever you please and then burn it off in the gym simply doesn’t work. This is why most people fail to see their body change, at least change for the better. You can blame the workout program, but it is really the food and lifestyle habits that need changed.

This does not mean you can never enjoy your favorite foods or have a drink, but they do need to be controlled. Cheat 20% of the time and you should be fine that means 20% of your weekly calories come from “bad” foods and the other 80% come from “good” foods. Tracking it this way for a week usually reveals that you are only eating clean 50-60% of the time, here lies the problem.

And what about alcohol? Keep it to no more than six drinks a week and you will be fine. (Just don’t go out and buy bigger wine glasses.)

Here are three tips to ensure you never bulk up:

  1. Eat Clean. This means lean proteins, lots of veggies, good quality carbs such as brown rice, sweet potatoes, and whole-wheat pasta (1 cup serving, not 4) make up 80% of your weekly calories.
  2. Stop The Latte Habit. Drinking calories is the fastest way to pack on extra weight. Lattes, soda, juices, and sports drinks are loaded with sugar and as little as one or two a day can cause you gain weight.
  3. Lift Three Days A Week. Three 45 minute strength training sessions that focus on total body movements will create changes in your body cardio can never do. In a short time people will begin to notice that something has changed and ask what you are doing different because you look amazing. And if you still would like to do some cardio go for it, just make sure you always get your three strength workouts in each week.

Stop worrying about bulking and start lifting!

 

If you are interested in seeing our strength training can change your body, get started with our 6-Week “Strong is the New Sexy” Challenge by clicking the link below.

Weekend Warrior Workout – April 7th, 2017

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5 Rounds

20 Yard Tire Flip

20 Yard Farmer’s Carry

Enjoy!

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Recipe of the Week – Blueberry Espresso Brownies

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Give these delicious paleo friendly brownies a try.

Ingredients

  • 1 Cup Coconut Cream Concentrate MELTED (and a bit leftover for drizzling)
  • 3 Eggs
  • 1/2 Cup Raw Organic Honey
  • 1/4 Cup Organic Cocoa Powder
  • 1 Tbsp Cinnamon
  • 1 Tbsp Ground Coffee
  • 2 Tsp Vanilla Extract
  • 1/2 Tsp Baking Soda
  • 1/4 Tsp Sea Salt
  • 1 Cup Blueberries

Instructions

  • Preheat your oven to 325 Degrees F
  • Place coconut cream concentrate (coconut butter), eggs, honey, cocoa powder, cinnamon, coffee, vanilla, baking soda, and sea salt together in a mixing bowl
  • Use your hand mixer or stand mixer to mix all your ingredients until well blended
  • Once ready, fold in your blueberries by hand so you don’t crush them all
  • Pour your batter into a greased 9×13 baking dish (grease with coconut oil) or into greased individual mini muffin pans like I did
  • Place in the oven and bake for approximately 30 minutes. At about 25 minutes, do the toothpick test and judge how much longer you need
  • Remove from oven, let cool
  • Once cool, use some melted Coconut Cream Concentrate and drizzle all over your brownies
  • Cut and Enjoy

Recipe Source: http://civilizedcavemancooking.com/recipes/desserts/blueberry-espresso-brownies/

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Weekend Warrior Workout – March 31st, 2017

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Need a workout this weekend?

Give this weeks “Weekend Warrior Workout” a try.

 

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5 Fitness Mistakes

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With all the conflicting advice and information available on exercise it can be difficult to know what to do and what works best to get into awesome shape, feel good, and have a body that you feel confident in.

Using our 16 years of experience in the fitness industry here are five mistakes we see many people make in their workout and fitness plans.

 

You Use Exercise As Punishment

Exercise is intended to be a reward for your body. Exercise should be something that makes you feel better, more confident, and add to your life. It should not be beat down that leaves you laying dead on the floor, or as a punishment for what you ate or gaining a few pounds.

 

You Only Do Cardio and High Intensity Interval Training

While cardio and HIIT can be beneficial and have a place in fitness, when they are the only form of exercise they can hinder your results. Overtime they both will cause a loss in muscle tissue, which leads to increased body fat percentages, and HIIT tends to make you extremely hungry afterward causing you to overeat.

This doesn’t mean that you have to give up your cardio or HIIT, you just need to limit them to 1-2 workouts per week and get in 2-3 total body strength workouts first. Following this order will get better results and create positive change.

 

You Don’t Eat Enough

You cannot restrict calories forever. Your body needs fuel to power through your workouts and keep everything running like a well oiled machine. When calorie restriction goes too long the body begins to lose muscle and gain body fat, leading to the dreaded skinny fat body type.

Also, as you change your nutritional requirements will change. As you get leaner and stronger your body needs more daily calories and needs a higher daily carb intake.

 

You Don’t Allow Your Body Time To Rest

Working out every day may work for short period of time, but it soon leads to burn out and an achy, tired body.

Three to four workouts per week is optimal and if you want to add a daily walk or light mobility work that will help you recover faster between workouts. Again as you get stronger you are able to stress the body more each workout and that stress requires more time to recover in order to keep making progress.

 

You’re Only Focused On Burning Calories

How many calories you burn in your workout plays a very small role in the results you get. It is very easy to get caught up in the calorie burn of your workout and feel the need to do more cardio and HIIT, as those tend to create a higher burn.

You will never out exercise a bad diet. So thinking you can go out drinking and eat bad tonight and then burn it all off in the gym is a recipe for failure. Clean eating done 80% of the time with a few strength workouts each week will beat the pants off of cardio and HIIT workouts when in comes to getting results and decreasing body fat.

Hard work and consistency are important for results, but it has to be the right consistent effort. If you’ve been making any of the above 5 Fitness Mistakes correct them in your routine and watch your results take off!

Related Articles:

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5 Things To Look For When Buying Food

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We had a great turn out this past Saturday for our Nutrition Seminar, taught by PNF Nutrition Coach Courtney Kirkwood. In case you missed it here are five take-aways from her presentation on things to look for when shopping for food.

  • When buying meat look for Certified USDA Organic. Certified USDA Organic is the cleanest meat on the market with no pesticides or hormones having been used, the animals are treated the most humanely, and it is the most environmentally friendly way of producing meat. Also, in the U.S. it is illegal to used hormones in pork. So pork that is marked hormone free is just a marketing ploy to get you to spend a little more money for the same product.
  • Artificial sweetners are masked under many different names. Check your labels for the following: Acesulfame Potassium, Aspartame, Neotame, Saccharin, Sucralose, Stevia, and Rebaudioside are just a few. Do your research on the ingredients in your food.
  • Prepare as much of you food at home as possible. This not only ensures that you eat less hidden calories, but it also helps you control what you are eating and what is in your food.
  • Watch for added sugars they are in just about everything that is packaged.
  • Don’t fall for Stevia’s “natural” claim. There is something like 42 or 43 molecules that make up the Stevia sweetners we buy in the store, of those only one molecule is natural the rest are all made in a lab or through processing. Stevia, also under the name Truvia and Stevia in the Raw, is just the latest hot sugar substitute and is really no better for you than Sweet N’ Low, Equal, or Splenda. When using sugar it is always better to use a true natural sweetner like plain sugar or honey. These are less processed and our bodies know how how to handle to them.

Eating clean can be very difficult, as there are many hidden ingredients in our food these days. The best rule of thumb is to look for items with the least amount of ingredients, look up the big “science class” words, and cook most of your meals at home.

If you would like more help with nutrition coaching, check out the link below.