Eat, Execise, Enjoy! August 31-Sept 6th

With the summer vacations winding down and the kids going back to school, now is the time to get into a regular eating and exercise rhythm before the next round of yearly chaos (aka the holidays!) Rhythms don't have to be boring or restrictive. The number one food I hear clients say they are sick of eating is grilled chicken. It's time to spice up this healthy cook's staple with a ton of "stuff"! This recipe is a perfect post-workout meal, and it even lets you choose your own filling! Try a different one each week and kiss your chicken blues goodbye!

Cream Cheese and Pesto-Stuffed Chicken Breasts

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, (1-1 1/4 pounds total)
• 1/2 cup plain dry breadcrumbs
• 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

Cream Cheese-Pesto Filling:

• 2 tablespoons reduced-fat cream cheese, (Neufchatel)
• 1 tablespoon basil pesto, (store-bought or homemade)
• Freshly ground pepper, to taste

Goat Cheese-Olive Filling:

• 2 tablespoons creamy goat cheese
• 1 tablespoon chopped black olives
• Freshly ground pepper, to taste

Ham & Cheese Filling:

• 1/4 cup grated Swiss, Monterey Jack or part-skim mozzarella cheese
• 2 tablespoons chopped ham
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• Freshly ground pepper, to taste

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Coat a rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray.
2. Combine cream cheese, pesto and pepper in a small bowl with a fork.
3. Cut a horizontal slit along the thin, long edge of a chicken breast half, nearly through to the opposite side. Open up each breast and place one-fourth of the filling in the center. Close the breast over the filling, pressing the edges firmly together to seal. Repeat with the remaining chicken breasts and filling.
4. Lightly beat egg white with a fork in a medium bowl. Place breadcrumbs in a shallow glass dish. Hold each chicken breast half together and dip in the egg white, then dredge in the breadcrumbs. (Discard leftovers.)
5. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken breasts; cook until browned on one side, about 2 minutes. Place the chicken, browned-side up, on the prepared baking sheet. Bake until the chicken is no longer pink in the center or until an instant-read thermometer registers 170°F, about 20 minutes.

Cream cheese-pesto stuffed chicken per serving: 233 calories; 9 g fat (4 g sat, 3 g mono); 81 mg cholesterol; 7 g carbohydrates; 33 g protein; 1 g fiber; 379 mg sodium; 351 mg potassium.

1 Carbohydrate Serving
Exchanges: 1 Carbohydrate Serving, Exchanges: 1/2 starch, 3 1/2 lean meat, 1 fat
Nutrition Note: Goat cheese-olive stuffed chicken per serving: 235 calories; 7 g fat (2 g sat, 3 g mono); 72 mg cholesterol; 10 g carbohydrate; 31 g protein; 1 g fiber; 248 mg sodium. Ham-&-cheese stuffed chicken per serving: 236 calories; 7 g fat (2 g sat, 3 g mono

Eat, Exercise, Enjoy: August 23-30th!

Don't tell my MamMam, but I just had to revamp her classic Cabbage Roll recipe. Growing up in a Polish family, there was almost nothing you could choose that wouldn't leave you feeling sluggish and guilty. Now that I'm running the kitchen, I plan on passing on the traditions I was raised with, but with my own health-ified spin! Do you have any recipes that you'd like some advice on tweaking! Bring them in! We're here to help! These rolls go very well with steam broccoli or green beans.

(Don't tell MamMam's) Cabbage Rolls

Ingredients

1/2 head of green cabbage 
1 pound of extra lean ground ground beef 
1 cup of uncooked quinoa 
14 oz tomato sauce
1/2 cup light parmesan cheese 
1 onion, diced 
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped 
1 tbsp of oregano 
1 tsp pepper 
1 tsp salt

---

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Cook rice and steam cabbage leaves until soft (in separate pots).
3. Meanwhile, mix together all other ingredients (except tomato sauce and cheese) in large bowl.
4. Stir cooked rice into beef mixture.
5. Once cabbage leaves are soft and cool enough to handle (can run under cold water to speed process), chop cabbage into strips and layer casserole style by alternating cabbage and the meat mixture (NOTE: if you have the time, you could also roll one spoonful of the beef mixture into a leaf. Put rolls in a single layer in a glass casserole dish.)
6. Once all your beef mixture is used up, mix soup according to directions and pour over casserole dish.
7. Sprinkle parmesan cheese over dish.
8. Cook for 45 minutes or until top is crispy and light brown. 

Serves 6

Why Bother?

Did we get your attention? Great, because the key to any long-term change, whether its fat loss, muscle gain or improved general health and wellness is being able to explain exactly WHY you are bothering. Who doesn't want to look better, fit into a smaller size or have more energy and stamina? The key to long-term change and habit formation is being honest with yourself about EXACTLY why you want the changes you want and more specifically, what those changes will bring to your life. Too often we make changes because we are forced to, such as in a health emergency, or because a special event is upcoming. Take the time to write down your goals, and how they will change your life. 


If you are looking for some great cut-to-the-chase, realistic sources of information on body composition, nutrition and training, we recommend:


1) Burn the fat, feed the muscle or The Body Fat Solution ~ By Tom Venuto
http://www.tomvenuto.com/products_services.shtml


2) The Fat Loss Troubleshoot and Body By Eats ~ Leigh Peele
http://www.fatlosstroubleshoot.com/


3) Never Let Go ~ Dan John
http://danjohn.net/category/dan-john-products/


4) Girth Control ~ Alan Argon  
http://www.alanaragon.com/my-book.html


These resources will not only provide you with fantastic information, but reinforce the habits of healthy living into your daily life.

Eat, Exercise, Enjoy! August 12-19th!

Mom Wasn't Joking...
...breakfast is the most important meal of the day! After a long night of not eating, our metabolism's become sluggish and our blood sugar is low. It is so important to re-stoke your body's fire ! However, eating the wrong breakfast foods can be worse than not eating at all. The classics such as donuts, plain bagels, waffles and muffins are loaded with sugar on low on fiber, which will typically leave you looking everywhere for that 10am snack! Take the extra 5-10 minutes to give your body some slow-digesting carbohydrates, plenty of protein and healthy fats, and you'll cruise into lunch time! Some quick ideas include greek yogurt with some fruit and nuts, a high fiber cereal with low fat milk, or a simple meal replacement bar! Zone, South Beach and Balance bars have a good ratio of carbs, fat and protein to calories! Remember, calories count, so measure your portions if concerned with weight control!


For the days when you have some extra time, try this delicious, nutritious recipe from Precision Nutrition. French Toast is back...sort of!




Sunrise Sundae with French Toast Hash Browns 


Sundae Ingredients:
Small apple, diced (1/4 cup)
low-fat cottage cheese (1/2 cup)

Nectarine, diced (1/4 cup)

Sliced strawberries (1/4 cup)

Low fat cottage cheese (1/2 cup)

Grapes (1/4 cup)
Mixed nuts, crushed (1/4 cup)


Layer all ingredients as listed beginning with the apples on the bottom into glasses. Serves 2!


French Toast Hash Browns:
1 slice whole grain bread

Whole egg
Pinch of cinnamon and salt
Cooking spray

 Cut bread into 1-inch cubes. Whisk egg, cinnamon and salt in small mixing bowl and dip bread cubes into mixture. Let them soak for 30 seconds, then pour the entire mixture into a frying pan prepared with cooking spray. Lightly brown the bread on low heat and serve immediately. Serves 2.






Calories per serving: 365.6, Fat: 16.6g, Protein: 24.3g, Carbohydrate: 29.8g, Fiber: 5.1g


ENJOY!!!

Eat, Exercise Enjoy: August 1-8th!

Welcome to August, everyone! Where has the summer gone? Before you know it, the fall will be here. Some of us will welcome the return back to a weekly, predictable routine. Take advantage of the return to normalcy in your diet and your training. Get involved with the weekly classes we offer. Remember, we are now offering classes for your children too!

This week's recipe is brought to you by Precision Nutrition by Dr. John Berardi. With the natural sweetness of coconut but use of apple, it's the perfect dessert or snack for summer or fall!

Wholesome Fruit Crumble 


1 tbsp light butter or oil
2 tbsp water
1 cup cored and chopped Gala apples
1 cup cored and chopped pears
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp honey
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup frozen raspberries
1 cup store bought granola of your choice (here's a low-sugar recipe: http://www.scribd.com/doc/19982996/Light-Granola)

Preheat a large pot on medium heat. Add the oil, water, apples and pears. Cook until the fruit starts going soft (about 5-8 min) then add the cinnamon, honey and vanilla extract and cook for a few more minutes until the liquid is lightly thickened. Stir in the raspberries and remove from heat to cool a little. Add  1/4 cup homemade granola. Serves 4.

Per serving: 210 calories, 4.5 grams fat, 39 grams carbs, 3 grams protein

Son of Advanced Fitness owners wins 1.5 mile kids race!

The 7th annual Kennett Area Park and Recreation Board (KAPRB) Free Kids Cross Country Race was held this past Tuesday night, July 27, 2010, at Anson B. Nixon Park in Kennett Square.

A record turn-out of 153 kids participated in the 1.5-mile event.

Alex Wilkins, 12 and son of Nathalie & John Wilkins, won the race with a time of 9 minutes, 33 seconds. KC Breeding, 12, was the top female finisher and placed fourth overall with a clocking of 9:58.

Alex is a youth fitness personal training client with Advanced Fitness and trains with Personal Trainer Krista Rompolski. Alex's personal training incorporates body weight movements and core stability exercises designed to improve his muscular coordination and control. Speed and agility are the welcome side effects of proper youth personal training. He enjoys his personal training sessions and looks forward to every one.

Send an email, info@fit224.com, for more info about our Youth Personal Training and SAQ (Speed, Agility & Quickness) training.

Back to Health Chiropractic / Advanced Fitness has been a proud sponsor of the race over the last few years.

You can also read about this at: http://www.southernchestercountyweeklies.com/articles/2010/07/29/avon_grove_sun/sports/doc4c518a02b78a2350271731.txt

Local Triathlon Team Wins Philly Title

Advanced Fitness would like to congratulate Team Scott Honda on winning the Team Title at the 2010 Philadelphia Women's Triathlon on July 11, 2010. Back to Health Chiropractic / Advanced Fitness is also a sponsor as well as Scott Honda, Garrison's Cyclery and the Kennett YMCA. There were 668 women and 13 Teams that participated in the event this year.


Our own Dr. Nathalie Matte, co-owner of Advanced Fitness and Back to Health Chiropractic, competed in the Duathlon (Run-Bike-Run) and took home 3rd place in her age group with a time of 1:39:32. Another Team Scott Honda Duathlon competitor, Nicole Smith, took second place in her age group with a time of 1:38:30.

What an awesome showing by a dedicated group of women athletes! You can often find them training in our fitness classes so don't be disappointed if you can't keep up, obviously by their showing in Philly, not many people can.

You can read more about their win in the Kennett Paper at : http://www.southernchestercountyweeklies.com/articles/2010/07/29/kennett_paper/sports/doc4c5181fb25b4e265559844.txt

You can check out the Women's Philly Tri website here at:
http://www.cgiracing.com/2009Events/PhiladelphiaWomensTri.aspx