Clean Eating Recipe: Oatmeal Protein Pancakes

This is one of my favorite breakfast meals.  I usually pair it with a hard boiled egg for good fat and grapefruit

Oatmeal Protein Pancakes 

1/4 cup of cottage cheese

1/4 cup of egg whites

1/4c steel cut oats

1 scoop of protein powder (vanilla is my favorite)

1 Tsp of coconut oil OR Non stick cooking spray

Directions

Blend together using a hand mixer or blender

Heat pan and cook like a pancake

Makes 1 serving 

Tip:  These taste great hot or cold, so I recommend making enough for about 2-3 days,  and keeping them in the refrigerator

I top my pancakes with low sugar preserves OR you can eat them plain.  They taste great hot or cold!

Unrealistic Expectations Part 2: Have a Plan-Clean Eating

"It's already been 6 weeks!! I've been eating salad and exercising and I've only lost 3lbs"

Last time I discussed the importance of being realistic about the time it takes to actually see permanent change and lasting change
General Rule: At least 1 year

This person is eating salad and exercising, but not seeing great results.  Eating salad is not a plan and I'm sure this person doesn't have a consistent meal plan.  They probably eat "diet foods" (Lean Cuisines) or worse: This person is eating little to no food at all except salad.

In order to reach your goals successfully, you must have a plan and stick to it. 

There is a LOT of information out there and it can be tempting to switch from plan to plan and try everything when you're not getting your desired results.

 I encourage people to stick with a plan for about 2-4 weeks. If things really aren't working, then it is time to move on and try a different approach.  

Key point: Find a Clean Eating and Effective Exercise plan and stick to it.

The 3 Ingredients for Fitness Success

1. Consistency

2. Clean Eating

3. Exercise

1) Consistency

I don't care what you're doing, the way to be successful is to do it CONSISTENTLY.  If you're inconsistent with your diet and exercise, then it will show in your progress.  

Here's a piece of good news: You do not need to be perfect. 

I have an 80/20 rule for most of my life.  80% of the time we will take care of business, 20% of the time we will have areas of opportunity.  

Think about this: If you eat clean 80% of the time, then 20% of the time you can enjoy some of your treats.  You'll still see results and you can still enjoy life.  It has been my experience that once I have my treat, then I'm over it and don't need it again.  A lot of the time I spent all that time fantasizing about the treat and it doesn't even taste as good as my fantasy.  Isn't that true of a lot of things?

2) Clean Eating

What is clean eating?  Let's keep it simple.

Food in its natural state, Unprocessed, Real Food, not a lot of ingredients like polaugjagngieitol acid.

Clean Eating Meal

It doesn't just have to be salad!

Not a Clean Eating Meal

Full of sodium and lacking taste. You will also be hungry 5 minutes later

Simple Guidelines for Eating Clean

1) Avoid Processed/Convenience Foods- If that food can stay on the shelf for 3 years, think about what that means for your body.  I know all of these convenience foods where you microwave or bake for 5 minutes are supposed to make life easy, but they are doing long term damage to your health.  Eat Fresh whenever you can. 
General Rule: If it doesn't go bad/spoil, then move on. 

2) Cut the Fast Food -  "It's so expensive to eat clean. It's much cheaper to go to MacDonald's and Wendy's."  Lies and excuses.  Now, I'm as cheap as anybody.  I don't frequent fast food joints much anymore, but last time I went to Jack in the Box the value meals were $7 and $8.  Now for that much I can make about 2-3 meals of Chicken, Rice, and Veggies.  So I know someone else is gonna say, "Well what about the .99 menu?"  Check it out:  You get a little hamburger and some fries.  You can get 3 or 4 hamburgers out of 1lb of hamburger.  A Russet Potato at Trader Joe's is 39 cents.  You can make yourself a medium fries for .39.
Don't believe the hype.

3) Don't Drink Your Calories

The Devil

Drinking high calorie coffee drinks, soft drinks, and even "healthy smoothies" are killer to clean eating. They are full of sugar and extra calories that your body does not need. Save it for your 20% treat.

Jamba Juice should be a treat, it is not a health drink

What about juice?

Unless you're juicing your own fruits and veggies, I'm not a fan.  Most commercial juices are full of sugar and you're better off eating the actual fruit because it contains fiber.   I read once that a 16 oz of orange juice is equivalent to about 6 oranges. You're better off eating the orange.  Juices can be a treat.

Resources for Clean Eating

1) Clean Eating Magazine-Found in your local grocery store

The recipes are NOT boring, and the magazine provides plans to get started

2) Tosca Reno's Eat Clean Diet Book and Website

You can also find Tosca at the Eat Clean Diet blog: Eat Clean Diet and also on Facebook.  The woman is beyond inspirational.  She's in her 50's, transformed her body and life with clean eating, and did I mention she does fitness competitions?

3) Eating for Life

From the author of Body for Life

Order at Amazon.com

4) Bodybuilding.com

Bodybuilding.com spokesperson, Jamie Eason
This is what a clean eating diet looks like!

No it isn't just Chicken Breasts and sweet potatoes:  This site is an invaluable resource for recipes and workouts.  This particular page focuses on clean eating recipes with the goal of shedding fat.  

Truth: Abs are not made on a stupid crunch machine.  

They are made in the kitchen!

Recipes for sweet summer abs

Action Steps

1) Keep a food journal- Don't just track calories and fat.  Write down what time you ate your meal, what you ate, and how you feel.  Write when you're hungry.  You must learn your habits, so that you can begin changing one at a time.

2) Overhaul one vice/meal at a time - Everyone has SOMETHING that trips them up.  For me, it is fried foods.  When I came out of the wilderness, I imposed a 90 day ban on fried foods.  You will be surprised at how your cravings will disappear after a while.

I also encourage people to overhaul one meal at a time:  I prefer to start with breakfast or Meal 1.  I believe it sets the tone for the rest of the day.  If you're used to eating nothing, donuts, or worse...then this is a great place to start.

The above resources have great breakfast ideas.

3) Strive for consistency NOT perfection- You aren't going to eat perfectly all of the time, and nor should you.  This is real life.  Birthday parties happen, celebrations happen, meltdowns happen.  We're striving for CONSISTENCY NOT PERFECTION.

Follow the 80/20 rule.  If you're eating well throughout the week, go ahead and have a cheat meal on the weekend.  Have a treat.  Have your cheat and treat!  Notice that wasn't plural.  The weekends aren't the time to eat the whole buffet, but it is a time to allow yourself a treat.  

As you begin to eat clean, you'll notice that your taste buds will change.  The food you used to LOVE will suddenly be too sweet, salty, or make your tummy ache.  It will be easier to say No and make healthier choices.

Well that is our introduction to Clean Eating.  I will be posting recipes that I love on my blog as well.  

The next blog will be about Exercise Plans

Fiercely Yours.

C.Fierce

Unrealistic Expectations Part 1: Unrealistic Timeframes

In my last post, I gave some of the common complaints I hear when people make the choice to improve their health.

"It's already been 6 weeks!!! I've been exercising and eating salad.  I've only lost 3lbs.  Forget this mess...Bring on the French Fries and cocktails!"

 From now on, I don't want you to focus on losing WEIGHT.  I want you to retrain yourself to think and say, LOSING BODYFAT.  

You don't want to simply lose WEIGHT because then you could also be losing muscle mass which we don't want.  Losing muscle mass means jiggling and sagging, body parts dragging the ground, and a slower metabolism. 

Notice this model is about 10lbs heavier in WEIGHT, but she's leaner. She's leaner because of increased lean body mass (muscle).  I'll take 10lbs heavier and everything is up where it's supposed to be. Yes, muscle defies gravity.  It's the fountain of youth. (More on this later)

While we're on the subject, let's get it right: MUSCLE DOES NOT WEIGH MORE THAN FAT.  MUSCLE IS MORE DENSE THAN FAT AND TAKES UP LESS ROOM.  Think of it like this: 5lb dumbbell vs. 5lb feathers.  Muscle is the dumbbell, fat are the feathers. Both 5lbs, but the feathers take up a lot more space.  Even better here's what it looks like.

OK back to "It's already been 6 weeks, I've been exercising, and eating salad. I've only lost 3lbs" example.  There are two things wrong here.

1)Unrealistic Timeframes

2) No real plan.

Unrealistic Timeframes 

How long did it take you to gain weight? During my "wilderness" season of life, I put on 30lbs in about 4 years.  

Breaking it down that's:

7lbs a year 

.6lb per month

How did that happen? It was a slow and steady accumulation of bad habits.  I didn't just decide to eat the whole buffet one day and put it on overnight.

Brace yourself for this next bit of news.  Ready?

Give yourself about a year to lose the fat and keep it off.

Before you stop reading and go back to the informercials and shows that tell you that you will drop 

50 lbs in 2 weeks, keep in mind that there will be a LOT of progress in that year if you are CONSISTENT and form good habits.  

Give yourself at least 3 months of CONSISTENT clean eating and effective exercise to begin to see a permanent change.  This is a LIFESTYLE makeover.  Life is going to happen and there will be obstacles and setbacks. You aren't on the Biggest Loser...this is real life. 

Action Steps

1. Set your Big Goal and give yourself a realistic timeframe for progression

*WRITE IT DOWN...THIS IS NON NEGOTIABLE*

Big Goal: Where would you like to be one year from today?

Set goals for thing such as: Clothing size, waist size, fitness level, etc.  Refuse to limit yourself to just cosmetics: Do you want to lower your cholesterol? Run a 10K? Run a Half Marathon? Be able to do a pullup (that's one of mine)

Example: By January 2014, I will fit into size 25 jeans , be able to do a pullup, and I will exercise 5 days per week.

2. Set Quarterly, Monthly, Weekly, and Daily Goals

I measure my clients once every quarter.  3 months is enough time to see REAL change.  In our fast paced society, we get very discouraged when we don't see results in 10 minutes. People don't get too excited when they've lost 2 inch in 1 month, but when people see they've lost 10 inches in 3 months, that really does help them realize how much progress they've made.

Your weekly/monthly goals should focus more on habits than metrics. Changing your habits is the KEY to long term success.  A year of exchanging bad habits for good habits guarantees results.

Examples: 

Weekly Goal- I will Buy Fresh Produce and use it each week

Monthly Goal- I will work out 15 times this month.

Daily Goal- I will Drink 64 oz of water per day

ALL OF THIS SHOULD BE WRITTEN DOWN SO THAT YOU CAN HOLD YOURSELF ACCOUNTABLE AND CELEBRATE YOUR PROGRESS.

At the end of the day, week, month, quarter check in: How did it go? What works?  What didn't work? How can you improve?

In Part 2: We will be discuss Clean Eating and Exercise Plans

Fiercely Yours,

C. Fierce

Welcome to Fiercely Fit!

Happy New Year!

My purpose for creating this blog is to inspire, uplift, and encourage people to become better versions of themselves.  I truly believe 2013 is a year of transformation for many people.  As I encounter people from all walks of life on a daily basis, I hear a recurring theme:

I'm tired of getting by on minimal effort and getting minimal/mediocre results

We want more out of life.  

We're bored and comfortable where we are.  

It's time to move forward.

I'm there too because I've set some pretty scary goals for myself this year.  I look forward to sharing them with you on this blog and in person.  

 Right now is a great time to check our enthusiasm levels for #goals2013.  After working in gyms for a number of years, the first round of New Years Resolution members always leave the gym right around Valentine's Day.

Maybe it's because they got their sexy back and don't need to come anymore, but I'm willing to bet it's because we are at the magic 6 week mark.  This is where you begin to hear the following:

"Well I've been doing all this working out and eating salad and it isn't working.  I've lost 3lbs.  Forget this mess...Bring on the beer and french fries!"

"This is too hard.  I'm sore and tired.  Isn't there some kind of pill I can take to burn fat?"

"It's wintertime and I'm all covered up anyway.  I'll just work out when it's close to summer time so I can get rid of these grandma arms and spare tire."

"I don't have time for exercise and to plan my meals.  BTW have you watched the latest episode of Scandal or Downton Abbey?  What time are we going out for drinks?"

If any of these sound familiar, then please stay tuned.

For this month's blog series, I will be discussing Unrealistic expectations.  If you have questions that you'd like me to answer, please e-mail them to me @ geneva.fortson@gmail.com OR you can send me a message on Facebook!

Fiercely Yours,

C.Fierce