Arin Lindauer

This blog post is all about nutrition and meal prep!  This is where we see people excel or fail at any program. (Weight Loss or Muscle Gain)

We all reasonably know how to exercise and eat better, but what happens?

We get into our day to day without a plan.

I have heard all the countless limiting beliefs: time, don’t like to cook, not sure what to cook, time, I have to go to the grocery store, time…you see where I am going.

I will help you with what to focus on first, then show you exactly what we do in our household that you can try too!

In our journey to have more energy, feel better, maintain a reasonable weight and live a healthy life we tend to get a few things going really well but we almost always come back to nutrition habits needing modification.

If you started with nutrition first, way to go, you are ahead of most!

Nutrition  is something we talk about more frequently than anything else in our coaching and accountability at Transformation Fitness and Wellness, so I wanted to share with you 5 things to focus on most and then how we meal prep in the Lindauer house!  (You might be able to smell it through your screen, just don’t lick the screen!)

First I want to explain 5 Categories that are essential for your health:

1. Energy Intake – without adequate caloric intake, your body can’t function at peak efficiency. A caloric deficit is an essential requirement for fat loss, but extreme and prolonged starvation diets decrease your metabolic rate.  Caloric deprivation also makes it difficult to obtain all the other essentials.  Remember Food is Fuel.
2. Essential amino acids – Protein is arguably the most important macronutrient when you are focusing on fat loss. Protein helps you hold on to lean tissue while you are in a caloric deficit and it even helps suppress your appetite.  Amino acids are the building blocks of protein and cannot be made by your body, so you have to get them from food or supplements.  In addition to eating protein we take a supplement called Catalyst to help with our amino acid daily consumption.
3. Essential fatty acids – are good for cardiovascular health and numerous body functions, including burning fat. Again these cannot be synthesized in your body and must be obtained through food.  Salmon and avocados are great sources and so is Omegaplex.
4. Essential vitamins and minerals – these are necessary for proper body functions and your body cannot make them in adequate quantities. Fruits and veggies are the richest sources of these micronutrients but sometimes you need to supplement with a good multivitamin.  We use Coreplex and Coreplex with Iron.
5. Water – without water you would die in days. Even mild dehydration decreases physical performance.  Adequate water intake is also necessary to burn fat optimally.

This creates your foundation; now let me show you how we set up our food for the week.  This may be something that can work for you, or you may be able to take a few components and add it into your week.  We are all different on what will work best, and I am hoping you will give this a try.

We go to the grocery store once per week, either Saturday or Sunday.  Then on Sunday (sometimes Monday) we prep all our food for our lunches and dinners for the week. I look for 3 different entrees to cook so that we have variety through our week.

In this example I made:

Seasoned Grilled Chicken, Asparagus and Butternut Squash Risotto

Cheddar Bacon Burgers, Brussel Sprouts and Butternut Squash Risotto

Shredded Chicken in the Crockpot for Tacos

This is not the most gourmet, lean and green meal but I portion it out to 350-400 calories per container of food and between 20-30g of protein. Also I cooked and prepared all this is 1.5 hours!  (Except the chicken in the crockpot was 3 hours).

I started first with seasoning two whole boneless skinless chicken breasts.  I really like Fresh Markets products and used their poultry seasoning.

Then, we have a Cuisinart panini press, that I have never actually made a panini on, but it can cook a chicken breast in 7-12 minutes (depending on how thick it is).  Also, you can take off the grill plates and wash them in the dishwasher!

I next set the cooked Chicken Breast on a cutting board to cool and cut each breast in half.

For our veggies I definitely take the easy route and purchase either steamer bags, frozen, or Fresh Market has seasoned microwavable trays.  They have a variety of options.

Then, my favorite, the butternut squash risotto, alone this is a higher calorie option but spread out over 12 meals, it’s a nice sweet treat!  This can be any carbohydrate source you choose, just remember portion control.

Next up is the Cheddar Bacon Burgers!  These are already prepared at Fresh Market, but I will tell you another awesome recipe is Sirloin, chopped basil and Worcestershire sauce!

Servings: 6

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 lbs. mushrooms, you can use baby Portobello’s, Cremini or Button
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley, roughly chopped
• 1 small red bell pepper, finely chopped – reserve a little extra for serving
• 1 shallot, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes, diced
• 3/4 cup walnuts, chopped
• 1 cup baby spinach, chopped
• Sea salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375ºF.
2. Remove mushroom stems (and set aside for later). Brush mushrooms with a little olive oil, place (stem side up) and bake for 8-10 minutes.
3. In a sauté pan over medium-high heat, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Sauté the shallots, bell pepper, garlic and sun dried tomatoes for about 3 minutes until they start to get tender. Add in the parsley, finely chopped mushroom stems and chopped walnuts, cook another 2-3 minutes. Add in chopped spinach until it wilts. Add salt and pepper to taste.
4. Remove the mushrooms from the oven, pour off any water that accumulated in the mushrooms.
5. Spoon the filling into the mushrooms and bake for an additional 10-12 minutes. Topped with fresh, raw diced red bell peppers and serve warm.

Nutrition Facts: Calories per serving: 181; Fat: 15 g; Carbohydrates: 9 g, Fiber: 3 g, Sugars: 5 g; Protein: 7 g

Servings: 6

Ingredients:

• 1 can (15 ounces) black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 can (11 ounces) tuna in olive oil, drained
• 3/4 cup fresh tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped, or canned diced tomatoes
• 1/3 cup finely chopped red onion
• 1 tablespoon minced Serrano peppers
• 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 6 large butter lettuce leaves

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, combine beans, tuna, tomatoes, onion, peppers, oil and lime juice. Toss gently, being careful to keep tuna in bite-size pieces. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour.
2. Add parsley and cilantro; season with salt and pepper.
3. Spoon tuna salad into lettuce leaves. Fold up leaves and eat taco style.

Nutrition Facts: Calories per serving: 270; Carbohydrates: 14g, Fiber: 5 g; Fat: 17 g, Saturated Fat: 2.5 g;  Protein: 18 g; Sodium: 200 mg

Think back to last Christmas…

Did it go smooth sailing or were there a few bumps in the road?

We had some fun moments and some not so fun moments.

My parents decided to take us all to Florida for some R&R.  Both my brother/sister-in-law and us ended up in Pediatric ER, one visit for their Natalie and one visit for our Leo.

Thankfully all ended well, but what a scare it was.

Not the trip they had intended it to be!

But nonetheless we still had a good time and all babies were taken care of.

Through it all we still were able to rest, relax and get in some workouts.  Working out for us is like breathing, and even when we travel we find a place to get outside or a gym workout we can attend.

I thought it might be helpful to have some strategies for “fitting fitness in”, even during the busiest times of the year.

 

Evaluate your fitness goals. What is absolutely necessary for you to feel like you accomplished something, and what can you let go occasionally?

Remember: the habit is more important than the intensity. This means that even just doing five minutes and then running out the door is more important than skipping your workout entirely. Seriously. You’ll feel much better about yourself if you do something rather than nothing.

 

Think about all the times each day when you’re waiting. Waiting in the car for someone who needs a ride. Waiting for the soup to boil on the stove. Waiting for the shower water to warm up. Waiting for the water in the microwave to heat up so you can have that cup of tea.

Those moments of waiting are perfect for “quick fitness”. Do some squats. Do some push-ups, even if it’s just against the counter. Stretch. Get out of the car and either jog in place or run some laps around the car. You could even run laps around the outside of your house (don’t judge till you try it; I’ve done it).

 

Remember the usual everyday fitness boosters. Like parking at the far end of the parking lot. Taking the stairs instead of the elevator or escalator. Talking on the phone while standing, not sitting. Bracing your abs while sitting at a red light. Doing a wall sit while brushing your teeth. Doing 10 crunches before getting out of bed in the morning. Taking the dog for an extra-long walk (go ahead and tire him out! You’ll be glad later!)

 

Make the most of household chores and turn up the fun music! Vacuum vigorously. Sweep with big motions. Run up and down the stairs a few times when putting away groceries or the laundry. Scrub tubs and floors in rhythm to the music. Aim to do anything you can to elevate your heart rate.

 

If possible in your work environment, hold walking meetings. In other words, instead of meeting in a conference room, meet at the door and go for a walk.

 

When you catch yourself wasting time online (Facebook, Pinterest, whatever), penalize yourself by doing a plank. Either you’ll get a lot more done (because you don’t waste as much time) or you’ll get a much better plank!

 

Challenge your friends to see who can fit in more fitness each week. Make a game out of it, including a great prize for the winner at the expense of everyone else, and you’ll be amazed at how much more time you find to fit fitness in!

 

Even though the December holiday times can feel rushed and stressful, when you make sure you get some exercise every day, you’ll be more prepared to greet your guests with a smile!

Hope you are having a wonderful Holiday Season!

I talk with lots of different people each day.  Each person has a different background or motivation for why they have reached out.

But a common theme is they want to feel better, have more energy, and move easier.

If I were to have a conversation on the street, how would I guide or direct someone towards better health?

I would share a 4 Step approach.

These steps can help you get started or they may help you if you feel stuck.

Step 1

Think about your motivation.

What is burning deep inside of you that you want to change, create, or do differently.

I hear people say they want to have more energy.  Take that one step further, what would the sense of having more energy do for you?

Would it make work easier?  Or maybe playing with the kids or grandkids easier?  How about playing with the dog?  Would the desire to work out be easier?

We always come back to the Why when we are talking about motivation.

It could be your health that’s driving you to want to make change.  What would better health do for you?

Or if you would like to lose weight, what would it do for you to be down in weight?

Lower risk for disease?  Be able to shop in all clothing stores?

We all have different reasons for being motivated and I encourage you to ask yourself why a couple of times.

Step 2

Time

We all get 24 hours and yet this is one of the biggest limiting factors.

How does one person seem to fit in time for meal prep and workouts, while another person does not?

It is taking a hard look at your priorities.

Sometimes it is going to bed earlier so you can actually get up and function in an early morning workout.

Or it’s going to work a few minutes earlier, taking a longer lunch so you can squeeze in that workout, shower and get back to the office.

Or leaving the office, so you can make your workout.

Traveling is another one we find as a reason someone does not have time.  I encourage you to look at the hotel you are staying in; do they have a workout room or could you do a body weight workout in your room?  Bring a couple of bands in your suitcase.

Finding time goes back to your motivation.

Step 3

Nutrition

This comes back to how many calories do you burn per day and how many do you consume.

It is that simple.

Understanding your basil metabolic rate (how many calories you burn each day) and then understanding how many calories are in each cube of cheese, glass of wine, each piece of chicken and yummy holiday treat.

We can consume calories like there is no tomorrow. (Myself included!)

Then we blame it on a bad metabolism.

I am poking fun, but in all sincerity one of the most eye-opening experiences is logging your food in a tool like My Fitness Pal.

It is so easy to consume 300 calories, but to burn 300 calories takes some work and TIME!

Step 4

Having a personal coach who can help motivate and hold you accountable.

We have always believed in having a coach ourselves.

Do we all reasonably know what to do…YES.

BUT, it can get overwhelming, or things that worked before stop working.

How do you navigate?

Or pesky pains can sneak in and try to throw us off course.  A coach can help you bust through any obstacle.

I hear over and over I need help with motivation and accountability.

My best advice is to hire someone who you know has a proven track record to helping people achieve the results you desire.

—

I hope this list has got you thinking!  I could write so much more on each step.

If you need some help finding a personal coach for you, just shoot me a message back.

I have time this week to jump on the phone and we can talk more about you.

I hope you are having a great week and never hesitate to reach out!

We are personal coaches who help motivate and will hold you accountable!

 

Servings: 6

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Thinly Sliced Red Onions
• 1/4 cup Fresh Lime Juice
• 1 cup Diced Avocados
• 1 cup Diced Strawberries
• 3 tablespoons Minced Jalapeno
• 1 Tablespoon Vegetable Oil
• 6 Tilapia Filets
• 6 Flour Tortillas
• 6 Tablespoons non-fat sour cream
• Salt as needed

Directions:

1. To make pickled red onions: in a bowl, combine the red onion with 2 TB of lime juice and 1/2 tsp salt; stir and refrigerate for at least one hour.
2. In another bowl, combine the diced avocados and strawberries; toss in the remaining lime juice.
3. Season the fish with salt. Heat the vegetable oil in a large sauté pan until nearly smoking; sear the fish on both sides until golden brown and cooked through (about 2-3 min per side depending on thickness of fish).
4. Lay the tortillas flat and top each with 1 Tbsp sour cream, 1 Tilapia filet, 1/2 Tbsp of jalapeno and 1 Tbsp of pickled red onions. Take the strawberry avocado mixture and divide it equally among each taco – serve immediately.

Nutrition Facts: Calories per serving: 360; Carbohydrates: 65 g, Fiber: 4 g; Fat: 11 g, Saturated Fat: 2.5g; Protein: 31 g; Sodium: 430 g