Nutrition Challenge Check-in

Nutrition Challenge Check-in

Nutrition Challenge Check-In!!!!

Hopefully, most of you have decided to join us on one or BOTH Summer Shape Up Nutrition Challenges we proposed last week…the 800 g challenge or “Dry till July.” If you need a review on those challenges, check out last week’s blog post here. While officially both challenges go until the start of July, especially for the 800 g challenge, I’d encourage you to aim for longer. Steve and I hit the 800 g challenge requirement every day, year-round, and it’s one of the main reasons we’re able to stay lean and healthy even though we’re both approaching 50. Basic “Cole’s notes” on the 800 g challenge, is that every day, you are to eat 800g worth of veggies and fruits which equates to approximately 6 fistfuls over the course of the day.

Hitting 6 fistfuls is easy if you have the right resources stocked in your fridge and freezer.

Here’s what you’ll often find in our freezer as well as a brief explanation of how we use them: (I always look for these items when shopping and try to get what’s on sale)

FREEZER:

-Frozen Roasted Veggie mix from Safeway (see video!)

-Pan fry with a touch of olive oil and garlic or Pesto variety for an easy “Veggie” side for dinner and use leftovers for lunches. I usually prep 2 bags at once!

-Frozen Green beans- microwave with a touch of Himalayan Sea salt and garlic powder. Use for Dinner veg and or lunches-Frozen Brussel Sprouts – “Economy” bag size- Superstore. If this is the lunch veggie for the week, I roast up the entire bag on Sunday, enjoy a serving for dinner, then a fistful for each Steve and I at lunches and a small serve for the kids in their lunches for the week. To prepare, I dump the entire bag in a large bowl, spray with Olive oil and sprinkle with Himalayan Sea salt. I then spread over parchment paper on 2-3 cookie sheets and roast in the Oven (convection setting at 375). They usually take about 35-45 min

-Frozen Cauliflower and Frozen Strawberries – To make protein ice cream – see Video!!!

-Frozen Blueberries – I LOVE frozen blueberries and have a cupful of them every night as my “desert”, sometimes on their own, sometimes with Powdered PB and most often with puffed rice, cinnamon and unsweetened almond milk, and a dash of stevia.

-Frozen Mixed berries – Steve uses these along with a handful of Spinach, almonds and Protein Powder in his daily am Protein shake

FRIDGE:

Large Bag of Pre-chopped Cabbage and 3-6 heads of Romaine – Especially with the warm weather here, during the week Steve’s and my dinner will often be a large salad using either of these items as a base, loaded with a variety of other veggies and topped with protein of choice. Our go to salad themes are “sushi salad” think Poke bowl on steroids, Fajita salad, and our go to cabbage salad with tahini/soy/apple cider vinegar dressing. Click the link to see what our sushi salad looks like and post your favourite salads on the PI Facebook Lounge.

Other Veggies that are added to our salads and are always found in our fridge: cucumbers, peppers, jicama, grape tomatoes, green onions

Random Veggies for snacking – Carrots, Celery, Snap peas

Cupboard

Yams, and potatoes of any variety and colour. For Level 1 of the 800g challenge, yams or potatoes can count towards your veggie quota. If you’re doing Level 2 of the challenge, please enjoy these (Yams, Sweet Potatoes and Potatoes) but don’t count them towards your daily 800g or 6 cups. Yams, Sweet Potatoes and Potatoes are Steve’s and my most often enjoyed smart starch that forms the base of many of our lunches and we certainly don’t shy away from them, but we count them towards our carb allotment rather than daily veggies.

Onions- A few times a week I’ll slice 4-5 onions into rings and then pan fry in a non- stick pan. I then add them to salads and stir-fries to add flavour and amazing pre-biotics to the meal.

I’d love to see ideas of how YOU are working towards your daily 800g or 6 daily fistfuls of Veg and Fruit. Please post your veg and fruit rich veggies and snack on our PI Private Facebook Page the PI Lounge to motivate yourself and others.PS…..If you’re doing the “Dry till July”, feel free to post your successes there! I.e., What non-caloric drinks are you enjoying instead of your usual wine, beer, “nude” or cocktail??I successfully made it through last weekend drinking a mix of mango bubbly water and Fresca in place of my usual Saturday night Fresca + tequila mix. Once I had set my mind to it that I wasn’t drinking, it wasn’t that hard after all.

If you’re a member at PI and want to join one of our Nutrition Challenges, signal your commitment by signing your name to the bright spots board under the challenge of your choice. If you’re not a member of PI, but want motivation as well as fitness and nutrition guidance, consider booking an assessment today for Group Training, Personal Training or Nutrition Coaching at www.pitraining.ca or by clicking here or speak to a real, caring person by calling 604-291-9941.