Month: December 2016

What’s on the Menu

If you’ve been following this blog for an extended period of time, you are probably privy to the fact that I’m a devout omnivore. That devotion is what inspires me to order the “charcuterie board” whenever I see it on a restaurant’s menu.

Meat and cheese may seem simple, but the variety of flavors that can exist within those two food categories appears to be endless. Which is why when Shannon asked me what we should have for a mid afternoon snack on Christmas I almost involuntarily responded, “charcuterie!”

I’ll admit right now that I had no idea that my request would result in the picture you see below.

whatsonthemenu-12-28

(Vegan Cheeze Dip in the top left corner)

As you can see the board contained a variety of meats and cheeses, but it also contained Shannon’s vegan cheeze dip. I know what you’re thinking “How the hell can cheese dip be vegan?” Fortunately, the answer to that question is ridiculously simple. Check out the recipe from her blog to see why:

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 1/2 cup Raw Cashews
  • 2-3 Garlic Cloves
  • 1 1/2 cup Nutritional Yeast
  • 3/4 cup Water
  • 3 tbsp Fresh Lemon Juice
  • 1 tsp Dijon Mustard
  • 1 tsp Chili Powder
  • pinch of Cayenne Powder
  • pinch of Turmeric

DIRECTIONS:

Dump all the ingredients into a food processor and blend till creamy.

This recipe is perfect for everyone! It doesn’t contain any dairy, the cashews are full of healthy fats (source), the nutritional yeast has a surprising amount of protein (source) and the vast majority of its carbs come from fiber.

You make this dip for you next big party and I promise you’ll be having people asking you for the recipe. Just make sure you tell them you got it from elementaltampa.com!

Addicted to Fitness Show Notes – 2016 Health & Fitness Accomplishments

I’m taking the show notes back this week as Shannon recovers after a stellar Christmas Day performance at our place. The woman is a hell of a host let me tell you. You all hear how passionate she is about exercise each week on the podcast so I’m sure you can imagine her engineering an all day Christmas extravaganza. With one holiday in the books, and New Years well in sight, Shannon and I thought it be appropriate to look back at our 2016 health and fitness achievements on this week’s episode of Addicted to Fitness.

xmas-snack

Listing our achievements for 2016 made us grow nostalgic of all we were able to accomplish in the past year. We reminisced about the first Elemental Training Tampa (ETT) mudrun, coaching Carmin at Mike Calta’s Punchout 2, Shannon purchasing and loving her Peloton cycle, my tumultuous year of jiu-jitsu and Shannon’s dedication to a healthier way of eating (she’s already lost of 10 lbs!). Another achievement Shannon and I discuss is ETT’s first Facebook Live workout, which is happening December 26th at 11am EST. All you have to do is go to ETT’s Facebook page and you can take part in a intense HIIT workout that will help you work off some of those delicious Christmas calories.

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This podcast itself is most definitely an accomplishment for us in 2016. Producing a weekly health and fitness podcast was a goal I set before this year started and I’m proud to say we were able to accomplish it. We’d love hear what goals you accomplished this year. Please feel free to share them with us in the comment section, on our various social channels or you can email them to us at elementaltampa@gmail.com. Your feedback and support has helped us grow into a 5 star rated podcast and we are extremely grateful. Keep rating, reviewing and sharing the podcast and let’s stay healthy as we transition into another year.

Links for this week’s episode

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/our-2016-health-fitness-accomplishments/id1121420986?i=1000379331633&mt=2

Android: http://subscribeonandroid.com/addictedtofitness.libsyn.com/rss

Website: http://addictedtofitness.libsyn.com/our-2016-health-fitness-accomplishments

Try It This Weekend: The Burpee

Weekends are usually reserved for relaxing and recovering from a hectic workweek. UNLESS one of the biggest holidays of the year falls on the weekend, which is the predicament those celebrating Christmas are faced with this year. A large percentage of us will be driving, flying, eating, drinking, wrapping, unwrapping and hopefully spending time with the ones you love this weekend. It’s important to experience all that goes with the holiday because it only comes around once a year, but it is also important to incorporate a workout into your schedule. Trust me, conversations with relatives go a lot smoother if you get a workout in. However, since your schedule is chock full of social engagements, you have to make smart use of the little free time you do have. That’s where this week’s “try it” exercise comes in.

The modified burpee is a compound movement that will provide you with a total body workout without the need of any equipment. The burpee I’m describing may be a little different than ones you’re used to seeing and I’ll explain why in the following step by step explanation.

  1. Stand with your feet square and a little wider than shoulder width apart.
  2. Squat (eyes forward, chest up) down till your hands touch the floor. Your arms should be inside your legs at the bottom of your squat.
  3. STEP one foot back
  4. STEP the other foot back till you’re in the up push-up position. *** I suggest this technique opposed to thrusting your feet back to prevent any lower back pain or discomfort ***
  5. You should be in a flat back plank position
  6. Perform 1 push-up
  7. STEP one foot up
  8. STEP the other foot up till you’re back in the lowered squat position.
  9. Perform a vertical jump as you rise out of your lowered squat position. *** Land softly ***

– Repeat for desired number of reps

burpee_collage_ett

I recommend performing 5 sets of 10 modified burpees with 30-60 seconds of rest in between sets. Make sure to adjust the exercise and/or workout to match your fitness level. I imagine this workout will take approximately 10-15 minutes, leaving you plenty of time to do some last second wrapping.

If you try out the modified burpee, let us know what you think. Also, we’d love to see pics of you performing the exercise so feel free to share them with us on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter (@ettampa). Happy holidays peeps!

What’s on the Menu

Spaghetti and meatballs. I feel like those two have been perpetually linked since the beginning of time, or since pasta has been a thing. Fortunately, we’ve discovered that meatballs don’t always need a refined carb counterpart. This week’s look into Shannon and I’s menu features turkey meatballs paired with garlic sautéed baby bok choy instead of pasta. Bok choy is a great pasta alternative because it’s a cruciferous vegetable that is loaded with vitamins A, K, and C and contains over 70 antioxidants, which is why some researchers believe it can aid in cancer prevention (source). Expanding our food choices, especially when it comes to vegetables, is crucial to optimizing our health and developing as a species (source). The next time you go grocery shopping, forget the box of barilla and go for the bok choy. If you are already a bok choy fan, let us know what dishes you incorporate it into. We’re always looking for new recipes.

 

Addicted to Fitness Show Notes – Our Holiday Gift Guide

Notes by Shannon.

No doubt, all of you put a “new episode of the Addicted to Fitness podcast” on your holiday wishlist, but the good news is you don’t have to wait until the 25th to unwrap that particular present!

We have a special Holiday-themed episode which includes Nick and I sharing some of our favorite Christmas memories (the heartwarming and the funny). I’m sure you all can relate to one or the other!

Plus, you will get a sneak peek listen into a future podcast topic this week, as we visited a local cryotherapy center with a group of brave souls from ETT, and quite literally chilled out together.  Nick hosted an interview with the owner and got the group’s reaction post cryo-session, which we’ll be bringing to you after the new year.

shannon-and-i-cryo

Shannon and I at US Cryo Tampa

If you’re interested in learning more about cryotherapy in the meantime, listen to our past episode which documents Nick’s first-ever experience with this innovative form of therapy.

The second part of our episode goes into our holiday gift guide for the fitness fanatic in your life. Don’t worry, we’re sharing gift ideas that are also perfect last minute finds – no need to fret about an item not shipping in time!

Nick’s gift suggestions:

  • Jump Rope – Inexpensive, easy-to-find and an amazing workout on the road or at home.
  • Resistance bands – Portable and challenging, but simple to use.
  • An Audible membership – Quick and extremely handy for those looking to learn new health info on-the-go.

Shannon’s gift picks:

  • Fabletics Gift Card – Who doesn’t always need new workout clothes, especially stylish ones?
  • Cryo session – Give the gift of recovery!
  • Socks – The best gift you never thought of, but everyone needs, especially for working out.

I share more ideas in a recent post over on my blog.

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Regardless of whether you’re traveling or staying home for the holiday, we’re going to be doing a little extra something special for you – the first ETT Facebook Live! Tune in on the ETT Facebook page on December 26th at 11:00 a.m. EST for a HIIT workout to kick your butt in gear after the holiday weekend.

That’s right! You’ll get a live-stream of Nick and I, plus an awesome workout all in one!

Mark your calendars.

Meanwhile, if you have a topic or interview that you want to hear us discuss in a future podcast,  send us an email – elementaltampa@gmail.com – or give us a shout on our social channels.

Addicted to Fitness is now a 5 star rated podcast in the iTunes store and it’s all thanks to you. We so appreciate all your support and don’t forget to keep the feedback coming either on Facebook or by leaving a review in the iTunes store. Thanks again for listening and have a happy and healthy holiday!

Links to this week’s episode

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/our-holiday-fitness-gift-guide/id1121420986?i=1000379106952&mt=2

Android: http://subscribeonandroid.com/addictedtofitness.libsyn.com/rss

Website: http://addictedtofitness.libsyn.com/our-holiday-fitness-gift-guide

What’s on the Menu

This week’s peak into my daily nutrition features my non-dairy version of bulletproof coffee. For those that aren’t familiar with bulletproof coffee, it’s essentially a mixture of coffee, MCT oil and grass fed butter that was made popular by Dave Asprey. The idea behind this concoction is that it keeps you satiated longer unlike many common breakfast foods (i.e. cereal, doughnuts, bagels). Also, some people say that the MCT oil, which is a source of energy itself, can prolong the caffeine effect of coffee. Either way, as someone that makes a conscious effort to get the majority of his calories from fat, this seems like a good idea, but I can’t handle that much dairy right when I get up. Which is why I was ecstatic when I learned about a non-dairy version of the upgraded coffee during our interview with Anna Vocino on the Addicted to Fitness podcast. I’ve been using this recipe almost every morning for the last 3 months and I’ve had no problems, and unlike bulletproof coffee, this recipe contains a significant amount of protein. Give it the once over and let me know if you prefer it over the traditional bulletproof coffee recipe. 

Recipe
1/3 cup of Trader Joe’s Reduced fat canned coconut milk (90 calories, 9g of fat, 1g of sugar)

1 tbsp of Trader Joe’s Coconut oil (120 calories, 14g of fat, 0g of sugar)

2 tbsp of Great Lakes Collagen Hydrolysate (45 calories, 11g of protein)

12 ounces of black coffee (>2 calories)

*Pour all ingredients in a blender or shaker bottle and combine till well mixed 

= 317 calories, 30 g of fat, 11 g of protein and 1g of sugar

coffee-concoction

Thanks to author Anna Vocino for providing this recipe

Addicted to Fitness Show Notes – Interview with Swerve Sweetener President & CEO Andress Blackwell

Notes by Shannon.

This week’s podcast is going to be sweet.

It all started with the discovery of Swerve Sweetener. Picked up on a whim, we tried this sugar alternative after seeing it in a blog recipe. After making one kick-butt pumpkin pie, our interest was piqued.

Could this product that tastes comparable to sugar (you can use it 1:1 in most recipes to substitute regular sugar), with zero effect on blood sugar & insulin response, be too good to be true?

We put the question out into the world (and social media) and got a response. A response from the folks at Swerve Sweetener no less, offering up an interview with their President and CEO Andress Blackwell!

swerve-flat

Picture courtesy of Shannon Palmer

The quest for more information about this sugar substitute, which we have previously chatted about in a past episode, is what led to this week’s interview. Nick got the chance to ask those questions that had been nagging at us for weeks:

  • Where did the development of this particular sugar alcohol – erythritol – come from?
  • How was it different from other sugar alcohols that can cause some… gastric issues?
  • Where has it been tested? Will there be more tests in the future?
  • What’s the mission for the Swerve Sweetener team?
  • Who could benefit the most from a sweetener like this?
  • Where can you find this product now?

Nick got the answers to these questions and more in the interview.

As for where you can find this product to try it out for yourself (just in time for the holidays no less!), you can use the store locator feature on their website to find a retailer near you.

We’re not the only podcast talking about sugar substitutes. Friend of the podcast, Vinnie Tortorich voiced his opinion in an episode of his podcast not too long ago. (If you know Vinnie, you might very well be able to guess what his vote on any sugar-like product would be.)

Our main takeaway, though? It’s easy to see how something like this could come in handy as an extra tool to battle the overwhelming amount of sugar in our diets around the holidays (and the rest of the year). There’s a good chance I’ve got a couple batches of favorite holiday cookies baking up in the oven right now. It’s tradition after all.

But don’t take our word for it! Listen to the interview and let us know if this is a product you might be using to sweeten up your life in the future.

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President & CEO of Swerve Sweetener, Andress Blackwell

Have a topic or interview you want to hear us discuss in a future podcast? Send us an email – elementaltampa@gmail.com – or give us a head’s up on our social channels. Thanks so much for all your support and don’t forget to tell us what you think either on Facebook or by leaving a review in the iTunes store. We love your feedback! Thanks for listening and stay healthy this week peeps!

Links to this week’s episode

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/interview-president-ceo-swerve/id1121420986?i=1000378846236&mt=2

Android: http://subscribeonandroid.com/addictedtofitness.libsyn.com/rss

Website: http://addictedtofitness.libsyn.com/an-interview-with-the-president-ceo-of-swerve-sweetener-andress-blackwell

 

What’s on the Menu

There is a food craze going on that may seem new, but is in fact as old as time. This particular food item can be found in high end restaurants AND in the middle of the Serengeti. Celebrity chef, TV host and all-around badass Anthony Bourdin calls it “God’s Butter.” Shannon likes to call it “meat jelly.” I just call it DELICIOUS! If you haven’t figured it out yet, I’m talking about bone marrow. This often overlooked culinary delight can be found inside the bones of ruminants (cow, deer, etc.) and for the longest time was discarded by most Americans in the late 20th century & early 21st century. It seems like we’ve finally discovered the richness, in both nutrition and taste, of this somewhat forgotten food item. One ounce of beef bone marrow contains nearly 15g of fat (mostly monounsaturated), 2g of protein and 140 calories. It also contains important sources of fat soluble vitamins and minerals like calcium and iron (source). The exact amounts of these nutrients is hard to find but it’s believed that consuming bone marrow can improve gut health and even help treat individuals with cancer (source). I’m not quite prepared to call bone marrow the next miracle treatment for cancer, but I am willing to order it every time I see it on the menu.

bone-marrow

Bone Marrow starter from Edison Food+Drink Lab