Nibbles and Bits

HIGH ENERGY SNACKS FOR YOUNG ATHLETES

Young athletes are like high-powered cars with little gas tanks.  

In order to keep young athletes and cute sports cars zipping down the road, their tanks must be refilled with high octane fuel regularly. 

Choose fuel that optimizes performance. 

For young athletes, this means real foods that nourish and support growth and repair.  Whether meals or snacks, food selection should inlcude lean protein, vegetables, fruits, nuts and seeds, a little starch, and very limited sugar.

This past weekend, I provided nourishment for two different lacrosse teams. Loaded with complex carbohydrates, essential fats (including omega 3s), and a little chocolate, my No-Bake Energy Balls & Oat Bars were a huge hit. Best of all, these pop-in-your-mouth, real food snacks filled two teams worth of empty fuel tanks!

No-Bake Energy Balls

1 and 1/2 C Old Fashioned Oats

3/4 C almond butter or sunbutter

1/3 C honey

1 1/2 C unsweetened coconut flakes (find in organic/health food section of grocery store)

3/4 C ground flaxseed (find in organic/health food section of grocery store)

1/2 C finely chopped 60% dark chocolate or mini chocolate chips

Mix all ingredients together. Chill in refridegerator for 30 minutes.  Roll into balls. Store in an airtight container. 

Whip up a batch of these the next time it's your turn to be the Snack Mom or Dad. The kids will feel rejuvenated with a surge of energy and the coach will be delighted with the teams performance.

SNACKS VS MINI-MEALS

"Snacks" have become a mainstay in most peoples eating strategy. The idea of quick, easy, and tasty is hard to pass up.  Unfortunately, most snacks are non-nutrative, empty calories that taste really good.  Mini-bags of crunchy chips, popcorn, pretzels, low-fat cookies, 100 calorie yogurt, granola, gluten-free crackers, and Special K bars are just a few examples.  Although energy rich, these types of snacks are full of sugar which triggers insulin spikes. Insulin quickly derails fat loss and an active metabolism. Mini-meals, however, are nutritional dynamos.  1-2oz of lean protein, some in-season veggies plus a little fat will provide numerous vitamins and minerals plus enough energy to hold you until the next meal.  

*picture courtesy of RealSimple

MILK and ACNE

There are many potential causes of acne, but one gaining prominence is milk.  Many studies have linked the hormones, DHT in particular, found in milk to the over-stimulation of the sebaceous glands, which in turn causes acne.  If you, or your children, have acne, then take a look at what dairy products might be in your diet.  Try eliminating those dairy products and see what happens.

Click HERE for more reading.

 

MAKE MAYO

Why make mayo when you can buy a jar?  Because:

• storebought mayonaise is loaded with ingredients you and your loved ones should avoid
• it's an expensive jar of GMO oils (Genetically Modified Organism) 
• with only 5 ingredients, homemade mayonaise is a cinch to whip up

I received Well Fed as a gift and I have come to love this little gem. In addition to simple, tasty recipes, Melissa shares cooking and prep tips to minimize time in the kitchen.  One such tip is s-l-o-w-l-y pour the olive oil into the blender or food processor when making mayonaise. To see this in action, check out this how-to video.

Once the mayonaise is made, you have a great base to make a variety of creamy deliciousness.  Once such favorite in my house is Creamy Italian Dressing.  Feel free to play with the herbs and types of vinegar to create your own favorite.  

THE CANARY IN THE COAL MINE

Dr. Terry Wahls contracted the disabling disease MS.  She sought the most aggressive treatment available. It wasn't until she researched the healing power of food did she begin to recover.  Listen to her story and learn how she restored her health.  You will gain great insight into daily practices you can incorporate now to protect you from debilitating disease later.  Consider the implications for your family members as well. 

TEDxIowaCity

 

TRULY PALEO APPLE CRISP

Photo compliments of Paleo Foodie. 

6-8 medium Gala apples

1/4 C raisins

1 1/4 C almond flour

4 Tablespoons butter

1/2 C pecan halves

Juice of 1 lemon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon apple pie spice (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Peel, core and slice the apples. Toss with lemon juice, cinnamon, nutmeg, and apple pie spice.

(Note: previous recipes called for honey; but you don't need it. The apples and raisins are sweet enough!)

Pour apple mixture in a 9" x 9" pan. 

In a separate microwave safe bowl, melt butter.  Mix in almond flour and pecans. Use a fork to make crumbles, and flake this on top of the apples.

Cover in foil and bake for an hour, removing the foil half way through.  

This crumble-crisp mixture is delicious with other fruits, too.  Try blueberries or cranberries in place of the raisins. In the summer months, use local peaches or blackberries. When using fresh fruit, adjust the cooking time. Have fun! Let us know what you like best!

 

MINDFUL EATING

Mindfulness, the art of being present.  

I say "art" because being present is a skill multitasking addicts need to practice.  Mindfulness is awareness of what is happening inside (body, mind, and spirit,) and outside (surroundings) at any given point in time.  Mindfulness is simply awareness without judgment or criticism.  

In his Spiritual Wealth column, Alexander Green wrote about "the sandwich thief."  He made himself a sandwich, brought it into his office, and the next time he noticed, it was gone!  He had, of course, eaten the sandwich; but had not thought about, tasted or enjoyed it one bit.  How often do we gobble our food on the run and hardly notice that we'd eaten?  This lack of awareness turns a time-honored daily ritual into just another "to do" on the list.  Perhaps if we became more mindful, we'd enjoy our food more and be less inclined to make poor choices.  

Robin and I loved our trip to Paris last year.  One thing we noticed was when the French eat a meal, they take time to sit down and eat. When they buy a cup of coffee, they sit down and enjoy drinking their coffee. The French enjoy eating as a single event savored in the moment.   

Mindfulness encourages us to slow down to experience the present.  If you are mindfull when you eat, you will get so much more out of each meal.  Take time to sit down and eat your meals - at least one meal per day. Set the table. Savor the aroma, flavor and texture of your food and beverage. Pay attention to how your food looks.  If you're cooking, make it pretty. Think about the health benefits of what you're eating.  If you're cooking, serve proper portions using healthy ingredients in good balance (proteins, carbs, fats). Be present to the people at the table with you. Turn off outside media and pay attention to your loved ones. Give thanks and enjoy every aspect of the moment as well as the food.

The benefits of doing this are tremendous! You will enjoy meals more. You will have better digestion. You may even lose weight. You will enjoy the people you love more; it may even seem like you love them more! It is well worth the effort!  Strive to be more mindful and less mind full.

- Frank

DAIRY DOES NOT DO A BODY GOOD

Another report links, dairy, fat,  and breast cancer to increased rate of death.  Lead author Candyce Kroenke, a staff scientist at Kaiser Permanente, concluded "according to a study of 1,893 women, breast cancer survivors who average as little as one serving per day of high-fat dairy foods have a 49% higher risk of dying from breast cancer than those who eat little or no high-fat dairy."

This high percentage is alarming and worth exploring further. Previous studies have implicated a high fat diet in all kinds of cancer, however, this study looked specifically at high fat dairy and it's concentration of the hormone estrogen.  

Sharon Begley reported in the HuffPost "The research, published last week in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, is notable because more than a dozen studies since the late 1980s examined whether consuming milk, cheese, ice cream and other dairy products is related to breast cancer. The results were confusing."

Begley continues, "The Kaiser study is the first to separate out the effects of high- and low-fat dairy on women diagnosed with breast cancer. The hormone connection might apply beyond breast cancer. A 2012 study found that drinking more whole milk was associated with worse survival among men with prostate cancer, while skim milk was associated with higher survival."

Researchers say the estrogen in milk might be the problem. These hormones, which promote some breast cancers, reside in milk fat. Less milk fat means less estrogen, so the estrogen content of skim, 1 percent and 2 percent milk and products made from them is relatively low.

Another reason to suspect estrogens rather than fat itself was eating more saturated fat of all kinds did not raise the women's chances of dying of breast cancer as strongly as high-fat dairy did.  We can conclude consumption of essential fat is unrelated to breast-cancer mortality. Essential fat found in nuts, chocolate, coconut and vegetable fats such as those in avocados did not increase the risk.

This study is significant because it suggests fat as a whole may not be the problem, rather, it is the hormone estrogen in milk fat that links to mortality.  

To read the full report, click here. 

LEMON BARS

One word: Delicious!

Source: Nourishment Now

• 1 cup almonds

• 1 cup soft dates

• 1 vanilla bean or 1 TB vanilla extract

• Zest from one organic lemon

• 2 TBS lemon juice (ideally from the lemon above)

• 1 cup dried coconut

• ½ tsp. sea salt

Place almonds in a food processor and process into a fine powder. Add dates, vanilla, lemon juice and lemon zest to the processor. Process again until well mixed. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl mix your coconut and salt. Place this mixture into your food processor and blend until well mixed. Transfer mixture into a glass brownie pan (8x8) and press down. Refrigerate for about one hour.

 

 

GO PRO WITH PROTEIN

 

Coach Frank is an avid CrossFitter and an awesome Real Food Cook. In today's post, he shares his secrets to becoming a Protein Pro.

What kinds and cuts of meat do you eat?  I love that Robb Wolf lists bacon in all five of his "top five breakfasts." Few things smell or taste better than bacon! Breakfast sausage (links or patties), chicken sausage and slices of ham are also delicious in the morning, especially with eggs.  I've also been know to put crab, shrimp, or leftover salmon on my breakfast omelets.

Eggs should get a whole article on their own; they are such a tremendous source of protein. Fresh, local, free range eggs are best! At breakfast, they're great fried, poached, soft- or hard-boiled, scrambled, in an omelet, frittata, quiche or souffle'. It is a good idea to have hard-boiled eggs or slices of a frittata ready in the refrigerator for times that you need protein with a snack or quick meal. 

Robin and I frequently eat protein shakes after training. Shakes are quick, easy, and delicious. There are lots of yummy recipes! We use the vanilla or chocolate Egg Protein powder available for sale in the CrossFit Pro Shop. (We like egg white instead of whey or soy because we've eliminated both dairy and soy from our diet.)

We also bake chicken drumsticks to have in the refrigerator for times when we need a bite to grab and go.  

At lunch and dinner we eat pork (bacon, ham, breakfast sausage, Italian sausage, chorizo, bratwurst, pork loin chops and tenderloin), lamb, beef, turkey, venison, fish and shellfish. We try to grill outside several nights a week, and it is worthwhile to make enough for more than one meal. Think, too, of hearty soups and stews made in a crock pot or slow cooker.  They are a great way to create savory meals loaded with healthy meat and vegetables. We also try to have fish once or twice each week. The best is wild-caught Pacific salmon.  We also love tuna, swordfish or shark steaks. We love our own Paleo version of crab cakes as well as steamed shrimp, oysters and clams. For lunch today, we made a big, delicious tuna salad, using lots of veggies and a can of Solid White Albacore tuna in water. 

Totally sedentary people may not need large amounts of daily protein (but they do need protein and they do need to move more!) However, CrossFitters and avid exercisers who train with intensity do. Anyone trying to increase lean muscle mass also needs to ensure adequate protein consumption. Make sure you get an appropriate amount of protein with each meal and snack.

You owe it to yourself to eat well! Cook and eat healthy portions of protein!