It's that time again, summer is upon us and many of you have already started and many more are sure to follow with the dieting! Trying to clean up your bodies and shed some of that winter flab you've accumulated. One of the popular diets people like to go on is the low carb or ketosis type diets because they're generally believed to yield faster results; I myself am guilty of this trend to sometimes as I do find that it does help lean me out a lot faster. I usually will low to no carb diet for only 3-4 days and then then gradually reintroduce carbs back into my diet at the right times and ensuring that they are all quality complex carbs (oats and yams being my favorite). I find that by doing so I don't deal with all the pains and risks of living the low carb lifestyle, and I still get a lot of the benefits, but I will get into that at another time! Today was very busy for me and I didn't have tine for hardly anything let alone to eat so I rushed over across the street to pick these things up and still stick within my low low carb regimen at the moment, not bad right? Just keep an eye out for your sodium intake as the rotisseries have a lot of salt in them. Also finding precise calorie information for a rotisserie chicken is a little difficult, I found several different calorie amounts for the same thing... the average was about 150 calories for 3oz of the breast meat.
8.5oz of rotisserie breast meat and 4.5 tbsp. of guacamole = ~750-800 calories
8.6oz of rotisserie chicken which has around ~450-550 calories
First things first guys, for the average, everyday client I normally don't advocate using food scales and measuring your food and knowing all of your macros that you're eating down to a T! A lot of the time it's just too much for first time clients to take in and do right away. In reality it isn't necessary for many, not all, people to measure their food precisely, and you can still achieve amazing results and look great in the mirror.
What if you're looking to take your fitness goals to the next level though? Then you should get a food scale! When I say take your fitness goals to the next level I'm talking about getting super lean, getting ready for a bikini or physique show and so on, or I can be talking about someone who wants to build strength and muscle while minimizing fat gain. With all of these goals the bar is set higher and harder to achieve; you really have to zero in on your diet to see spectacular results. Now most of the foods we eat today all have nutrition labels, with the helpful information like serving size, calories, fats, carbs, proteins and so on, but when you're strict diet most of those foods with labels become obsolete. You'll find that you're eating mostly meats, none of which are created equal in size or calories, veggies, and healthy fats. None of these things have nutrition labels and if they do they usually go by ounces or grams, how the hell are you supposed to know how many calories you just ate? I don't know about you but I sure as hell didn't know what 8oz of chicken looked like, or 3 grams of almonds looked like when I first started. That's why having a good food scale really helps, preferably one that can measure in pounds, ounces, and grams. You weigh your food and you either google the calorie information or you can download one of the many apps for your smartphone, my favorite is "myfitnesspal" and search on there, and viola now you know how many calories you have in front of you.
In the case of these almonds you could either use a measuring cup or weigh out 30 grams worth, which I had no idea what 30 grams of almonds looked like, but now I do! 1 serving of almonds, or 30 grams has approximately 27 individual almonds and has about 170 calories, and now I'll remember that forever! This is why having a food scale is beneficial; after a while you start to get familiar on your own with portion sizes, and how many calories certain sizes of foods have, to the point where you won't even need the scale anymore!
I had been hearing a lot about the T-Fal OptiGrill for a while before I decided to actually go out and buy one. I was getting tired of always baking my meats, it always came out dry and I rarely ever looked forward to eating a dry piece of chicken with rice. Normally I could use the grill outside but with the winter and spring weather we've been having here in NY that's still out of the question. So I went and picked up an OptiGrill. Upon opening it the thing reminded me pretty much of the George Forman Grill. The thing that set it apart were the buttons and what they called the "Cooking Level Indicator Light". Each button had a picture of a different meat or item ranging from chicken, to a steak, to a burger patty, fish, even a Panini and so on. The way it works is you plug it in, press the power button and select the meat you'd like to cook. By selecting a certain button it heats the grill to a certain temperature ideal for that meat to be cooked to perfection. By paying attention to the cooking level indicator light you'll know when your meat is either Rare, Medium, Done and, or Well Done, the choice is yours. This feature is one that really one me over, because I'll admit it I totally suck at cooking meat and usually hate it. This makes it so much more worry-free, easy to do, easy to clean, and efficient as ever!
Now for how the food came out; what would be the point of a fancy grill if the food the came out sucked? Well you don't have to worry because I was amazed at not only how fast, and perfectly well done the T-Fal OptiGrill cooked all the meats, but also just how delicious they all were. I had never cooked chicken, steak, and turkey burgers so well before. They were all so juicy and savory, easy and enjoyable to chew and they stayed like that even after being in the fridge for a couple of days after. All you have to do is select the type of meat your cooking, wait for the grill to preheat to the right temperature in a matter of minutes and viola! Throw the meat on there and keep your eye on the cooking level indicator light as whatever is on the grill will be cooked to perfection in a matter of minutes! The OptiGrill also melts away so much of the fat on the meats you cook and drains it into a catcher underneath the grill, you'll be amazed at just how much artery-clogging fat this thing saves you from consuming.
So in a quick summary...
- The T-Fal OptiGrill, is very easy and simple to use even if you don't have any previous cooking or grilling experience.
- It cooks meats perfectly, timely, and efficiently.
- Doesn't make a mess and doesn't require any preparation work.
- Easy and simple to clean.
So stop wasting time cooking and prepping your meals the old fashioned way and pick up an OptiGrill today, I can almost guarantee you will not be disappointed!
A question I get a lot is, "What should I eat for breakfast?" Being that breakfast is considered to be the most important meal of day you definitely need to know what you should be eating... This picture of my breakfast is a pretty good example. As you can see we have a big portion of lean protein (2 whole eggs, 4 egg whites, and shrimp omelet with spinach), then we have two small pieces of sprouted grains toast which is very low on the glycemic index giving you longer sustained energy and feeling of satiety. Next we got a little green drink loaded with veggies made in the NutriBullet, and a cup of your favorite fruit for some immediate energy to break the fast; the fruit can be optional depending on how hard you're dieting trying to lose that little pudge around your belly. Last but not least I have my cup of black coffee, not always, but whenever I'm feeling like I need a little boost of energy. The caffeine from the coffee is going to help spike your metabolism and digest the meal better; also don't forget your water!
If you're trying to put on size, in terms of lean mass while minimizing the amount of fat and bloat you gain as well, then Pro Complex Gainer by ON is for you! While the majority of my clients all see me because they're trying to lose weight, I do have a very select few, both men and women looking to add a little size onto their frames. Now the generic rule of thumb if you're trying to lose weight you eat less, and conversely if you are trying to gain weight you eat more; now with either one you have to be careful. Eating too less of an amount of food can halt weight loss, whereas eating too much can make you put on too much excessive fat.
One thing people don't realize though when it comes to gaining weight, especially for those who are ectomorphs or "hardgainers" like my clients, is not only do you have to train the proper way for adding size, you also have to eat a ton. This is where ON's Pro Complex Gainer comes into play. It makes it easy to get in those crucial extra calories, but it's specially formulated with the right amount of ingredients and macronutrients so that you don't blow up into a chubby, bloated person that you don't recognize in the mirror every morning. With Pro Complex Gainer you'll put on lean mass with minimal fat gain as long as you are dieting the right way, and giving yourself proper rest and recovery time. I just finished my first tub in efforts to help me try and put on clean, lean, mass. I had 2-3 servings a day, each one being around 600 calories, on top of eating loads of food, and getting 8 hours of sleep every night, and training hard for strength and muscular hypertrophy. I put on 10lbs in a month! Not saying that it was solid muscle, I'm not even saying it was solid mass; if I had to guess at least 5lbs of that weight had to be water and food I was holding in my intestines. If 1-2lbs of that weight though could be muscle then that is still an amazing gain for someone in my shoes in just a time span of a month. Not only that I actually had clients telling me I was looking a lot bigger!
I had the chocolate flavor, it tasted great! Not too expensive at my gym at all, the only downside is each tub only has 14 servings or so they say... The scooper in these things is huge it looks like an old school laundry detergent scoop! I feel like mine lasted a lot longer then just 14 servings though so that's good. I usually had a serving after breakfast and before lunch, after a workout, and before bed every night. I'd definitely 100% recommend this product to anyone looking for some extra help in adding clean mass... Take a look at some of the pictures to learn a little more about it.
I originally bought AMINOLAST,Recovery & Endurance BCAA Superfuel because I wanted a tasty amino drink to sip on without all the caffeine. Some of you may have read my review on Optimum Nutrition's Amino Energy, which I love, but the only thing is it has caffeine in it. So sometimes when I'd workout at night and have that to drink I wouldn't be able to sleep. For whatever reason it may be sometime you just don't want caffeine and that's where Aminolast comes in!
It is your typical Amino drink that you can have before, during, and after your workouts as well as in between meals. Each serving has 10g of amino acids, electrolytes to aide further in recovery, and 1g of AMINOJECTtm, which is supposed to help diminish the negative effects of Ammonia buildup which slow you down while working out.
It does taste very sweet, even though there is no sugar in it, so I mix in a big (1 liter) bottle of water. It doesn't break down or mix very easily 100%, you do have to have to shake the crap out of the bottle to break it down fully. I have tried stirring it in a glass and it tends to clump a little on the top of the glass, not that big of deal though. As for the price it's a little pricey just for it being just an amino drink, I got it for 34 dollars. Each canister has 30 servings, so you're paying a little over a dollar for each serving.
I got the strawberry kiwi flavor, and again it was pretty tasty and refreshing especially if mixed with cold water. Again though a very popular trend these days is using artificial sweeteners and even though this stuff has no sugar it does taste very sweet. Which makes me worried about all of the fake sugar I'm getting in everyday and any possible side effects....
If you're already taking amino's, or bcaa's, I'd definitely recommend that you give Aminolast a try!
These just came out at my gym the other day and we've been running a buy one get one free promo on them since. So I of course hopped on the opportunity and bought a bunch because when you're in a hurry sometimes, it's hard to come by good calories that you can consume rather quickly and easily; and this is where the energy bar comes in! There are all kinds of bars out there, all different, all targeted toward different audiences with different goals. Generally I try to stay away from energy bars and protein bars alike just because they usually pair a bunch of fat and carbs, but sometimes it's better to put fuel in the tank than run on empty and right now since I'm trying to put on size I don't have to worry too much about calories or macronutrients.
Now for the bars, we have three flavors, s'mores, pb&j, and caramel peanut which is by far the best one in my opinion. The caramel peanut one has 360 calories, 14g of fat 6 of which are sat. fat, 33g of carbs, and 25g of protein. Now depending on how serious you're dieting it's actually not that bad when you need a quick light meal or snack and you don't have a whole lot of time or options around. The carb content is a little high especially if you're on a lower carb diet, but at the same time you're getting a lot of calories with this bar. Even though it's a good bar, and I like Labrada Nutrition, don't let the name fool you; you aren't going to be getting a lean body eating these bars unless you're putting in some serious work at the gym and prepping your other meals. For the average person/gym goer these bars aren't a bad choice to use for a light meal replacement or a big snack in my opinion; just as long as you don't go overboard, no more than one a day.
Larabar's have been around for a while, and when I say "clean" I mean there is minimal ingredients in them. Generally the more ingredients something has in it, tends to make it more and more unhealthy; especially when you start seeing weird names and chemicals in them. The Cherry Pie flavor Larabar, my favorite one, has only 3 ingredients! Dates, almonds, and unsweetened cherries, and that's it; pretty crazy when you compare it to other foods especially other snack and energy bars where they all have 20+ ingredients in them!
Now if you're super picky with food and you don't like tasting new things then they might take a little getting used too, but I personally don't think they're bad at all; especially because they're not bad for you at all. The only thing you really have to look out for in them is just the sugar and carb content because well they're primarily consisted of fruit! They make for a perfect post-workout snack because they have the fast digesting sugar which comes from fruit, the only thing I'd recommend if you're eating them post-workout is to drink a scoop or two of whey protein with it because they're lower on the protein side of things. As for the flavors I've tried most of them, and I like the cherry pie ones the most by far, so try them out!
The other day at work I was able to get my hands on a couple of samples of this stuff and was pretty eager to try it. I've never really heard of ALLMAX Nutrition, but they're a pretty good company from what I hear. I can't really say anything as for the quality of the supplement, it could be grade A quality; but as for the taste and consistency it was pretty bad. I had a couple of samples of the Citrus Peach Sensation, which reminded me of something along the lines of putrid fruit. Rather than use a shaker cup I tried stirring it in a glass of water with a spoon which could be why it came out so clumpy and inconsistent; which is odd because whey isolate generally mixes very well. I also figured that it would be clear looking like Isopure, instead it was a sherbet colored orange. I don't know how it would come out if you used a shaker cup or blender, but in all honesty I don't even think this product is worth a try. If you're looking for a good whey isolate, get it from a good brand like Optimum Nutrition, where you know you're getting the best quality protein at an affordable price and it tastes good! That or even just regular Isoflex is better than the Chiller version.
You can see that this stuff did not mix well at all
and what got stuck to the glass was stuck on there like glue
Hey everyone so as you can see I've been eating a ton of ground turkey lately, but one problem you might run into I when dieting or trying to eat cleaner and healthier is that certain foods get dull or boring. So because of this you always have to be switching things up even if it means just changing a couple of the ingredients; for this dish I used 99% lean ground turkey breast, favorite seasoning, assorted bell peppers, and canned jalapenos for some tangy spiciness! I love spicy foods and I love jalapenos, they add a really nice unique and interesting flavor and you can even poor some of the juice into the meat for extra deliciousness.
The peppers are good for boosting your metabolism a little bit to keep that fat burning going strong. You can add some cheese, or a healthy fat like an avocado to the side as well, as there is pretty much no fat in this dish; and remember to burn fat your body needs to consume fat as well!
So just because you might think two or thee things together would be gross you might be surprised at how new and good tasting they can be; it can definitely bring a lot of new and good flavors into your regular boring dishes!
It's that time again, summer is upon us and many of you have already started and many more are sure to follow with the dieting! Trying to clean up your bodies and shed some of that winter flab you've accumulated. One of the popular diets people like to go on is the low carb or ketosis type diets because they're generally believed to yield faster results; I myself am guilty of this trend to sometimes as I do find that it does help lean me out a lot faster. I usually will low to no carb diet for only 3-4 days and then then gradually reintroduce carbs back into my diet at the right times and ensuring that they are all quality complex carbs (oats and yams being my favorite). I find that by doing so I don't deal with all the pains and risks of living the low carb lifestyle, and I still get a lot of the benefits, but I will get into that at another time! Today was very busy for me and I didn't have tine for hardly anything let alone to eat so I rushed over across the street to pick these things up and still stick within my low low carb regimen at the moment, not bad right? Just keep an eye out for your sodium intake as the rotisseries have a lot of salt in them. Also finding precise calorie information for a rotisserie chicken is a little difficult, I found several different calorie amounts for the same thing... the average was about 150 calories for 3oz of the breast meat.
