Bad & Better Options @ Summer BBQs

Bad BBQ Dish: A Cheeseburger

A quarter-pound beef burger with a slice of cheese will set you back 510 calories (26 grams of fat). Skipping the cheese will save you about 100 calories. But if you love a good burger, go for it. It’s an excellent source of iron.

Better BBQ Dish: Hot Dog

A hot dog is lower in calories than you might think. Enjoy one on a roll with your favorite toppings (with lower-cal toppings like mustard, relish or just a little ketchup) and you’ll come out around 300 calories, 17 g fat.

Bad BBQ Side Dish: Potato Salad

There’s nothing inherently bad about potatoes: they’re actually a great source of vitamin C and fiber, but they contain more calories than other veggies. Plus, most potato salads are smothered in way too much full-fat mayo and will cost you about 360 calories and 20 or so grams of fat per cup.

Best BBQ Side Dish: Coleslaw

Coleslaw can satisfy a craving for something creamy for far fewer calories (83, with 3 grams of fat per cup). Low-cal cabbage is also a rich source of isothiocyanates, compounds that amp up the body’s natural detoxifying enzymes.

Bad BBQ Dessert: Strawberry Shortcake

Just because it contains fruit doesn’t mean it’s the healthiest or lowest-calorie choice. Between the cake and the loads of whipped cream that typically tops this summer favorite, you get a lot more calories than you may be bargaining for: about 425 (and around 20-25 grams of fat).

Better BBQ Dessert: A Frozen Fruit Bar

A frozen fruit bar (100 calories, 0 grams of fat). Or even a scoop of vanilla ice cream: 140 calories, about 5 grams of fat.

Chicken Avocado Pitas

These Chicken Avocado Pitas are healthy and filling, and taste just as great if they were packed full of calories.

This is one of our absolute favorite healthy summer sandwiches.

{{Ingredients}}

½ lb shredded cooked rotisserie chicken

2 avocados cut into small pieces

½ c plain Greek yogurt

1 t cilantro

1 t garlic salt

6-8 cherry tomatoes

4 slices of thin baby Swiss cheese

Juice from half a lemon

4 whole wheat pita pockets

1 tsp. extra virgin olive oil

{{Instructions}}

1. Put 1 piece of Swiss cheese into each pita pocket.

2. In a small bowl, combine Greek yogurt and garlic salt. Set aside.

3. In a medium bowl, combine avocado, quartered tomatoes, lemon juice, and half of the cilantro. Set aside. In a skillet, brown the cooked chicken with the olive oil over medium heat for 3-4 minutes. While cooking, sprinkle with half of the cilantro.

4. Take off of heat and add ¼ of the chicken to each pita.

5. Top the chicken with a drizzle of the yogurt mixture followed by a large spoonful of the avocado mixture, all within the pita pocket. Can be served cold, or grilled on a sandwich maker/foreman grill for 2 minutes to serve warm.

Coconut Delight Shakeology

Coconut Delight Shakeology

Summer is pretty much here in the Boston area!! In preparation for that, here’s a summery Shakeoloy recipe!   

1 serving of Chocolate Vegan Shakeology

• 1 cup coconut milk beverage
• ⅛ tsp. coconut extract
• 2 tsp. honey
• Handful of ice
• Blend until until it’s to the consistency you LOVE!

Calories: 290 * Protein:17g * Carbohydrate: 40g * Fat:8g * Saturated Fat: 6g

Jumping Jack June!

Ahhhh my last blog post was 10 weeks ago- (exactly 3 days before I gave birth to my BEAUTIFUL girl)!!  These past 10 weeks have been an amazing whirlwind.  Never have I been so blessed and thankful for such a blessing AND exhausted all at the same time.  I needed to take time off from fitness coaching to be with my baby (ahh I love being with her 24/7!) and get us into a routine.  I can say that we are just NOW into a routine (and she's sleeping through the night!).  I was in no rush to get us in a routine since I knew it would take lots of time for us to figure each other out, but I'm thankful we are there and know each other so well.  

Now that the routine is here for Baby and I, I can spend time on my fitness business while I am home. To kick it off, I've developed a 30 day schedule of jumping jacks for the month of June.  I LOVE offering FREE groups to friends for us to have a quick workout routine for the morning, evening, or during Bachelorette commercials!!

The group will NOT ONLY be focused on workouts, but also will focus on clean eating, recipe sharing, accountability, motivation, and prizes!!

If you want in, message me and we can chat about your goals and such to see if the free group is right for you!

Mac & Cheese with BROCCOLI!

Total Time: 37 min.

Prep Time: 20 min.

Cooking Time: 17 min.

Yield: 8 servings, approx. 1½ cups each

Ingredients:

4 oz. dry whole wheat elbow macaroni (or pasta)

4 tsp. organic grass-fed butter (or organic coconut oil)

2 Tbsp. unbleached whole wheat flour

1½ cups unsweetened almond milk

1¼ cups freshly grated extra-sharp cheddar cheese

3 cups cooked chopped chicken breast, boneless, skinless

6 cups chopped broccoli florets, steamed

1 tsp. sea salt (or Himalayan salt)

½ tsp. ground black pepper

Preparation:

1. Cook macaroni according to package directions. (Do not use salt or oil if suggested in directions.) Set aside.

2. Melt butter in large saucepan over medium heat.

3. Add flour; cook, whisking constantly, for 1 minute, or until brown (don’t let it burn).

4. Slowly whisk in almond milk; cook, whisking constantly, for 1 to 2 minutes, or until mixture thickens and there are no lumps.

5. Reduce heat to low. Add cheese; cook, whisking constantly, for 2 to 3 minutes, or until melted.

6. Add macaroni, chicken, broccoli, salt, and pepper; cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute, or until heated through.

7. Serve immediately.

Tips and Variations:

• Use quinoa pasta and gluten-free flour if you’re following a gluten-free lifestyle.

• Asparagus, green beans or Brussels sprouts can be substituted for broccoli.

• A combination of cheeses like cheddar and Gouda, cheddar and Monterey jack, and cheddar and Asiago can be substituted for sharp cheddar.