Steel Cut Oats - Groats

If you like creamy oatmeal, cream of wheat, or good ol' corn grits give this recipe for Groats a try.  

One of my favorite articles I've run into identifies Super Foods for Women.  Always looking to align my diet to be full of power and positive impact, I'm up to try a lot of new things.  A new favorite is Steel Cut Oats.

Steel cuts are the earthier cousin of traditional rolled or quick rolled oats.  The grain is cut two or three times.  Also known as Scotch oats, steel cut oats have a porridge like consistency.  They pack a wallop of fiber and cholesterol lowering properties and are a wonderful change from the traditional oatmeal or pre-measured sweetened instant packets.

Finding steel cut oats isn't hard.  Check your cereal aisle as they're often sold in canisters.  Trader Joe's sells a frozen version that is portioned out for heat-n-serve convenience.  In organic food aisles, Bob's Red Mill offers a bag for $3 - $4 dollars.  I personally prefer the bulk food section at my local grocery store where I pay $0.99 a pound for the organic oats.  I consume about a pound a month.

Preparing the oats does take more time so this isn't an instant breakfast.  Instead, I prepare enough for the week on Sunday evening.  For every 1 cup oats, use 4 parts water.

1 cup Steel Cut Oats
Pat of butter
3 1/2 cups Water
1/2 cup Low-Fat/Fat-Free Milk
Pinch of salt
Light brown sugar, wheat germ, flax seed, dried cranberries to serve

Melt the pat of butter (optional) in a small pot on medium - high.  Add the dry oats, tossing to coat in the butter and roasting lightly until they give off a nutty aroma (roughly 5 minutes). 

Increase the stove heat to high.  Add the water and salt and bring to a boil stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. 

Reduce heat to medium and continue simmering uncovered for 25 - 30 minutes. 

Add milk and stir into the groats, cooking for another 5 minutes.

Serve 1/2 cup of groats with a sprinkle of light brown sugar (1 tsp) and wheat germ.  If you like flax or cranberries that is also a good addition. 

Store groats in a sealed container and refrigerate.  I keep mine in the break room fridge for up to 4 days, portioning out and warming it in the microwave every morning.

Learning to Run

Confession: I despise running… in all forms. Where are you going? If you’re on a treadmill, the answer is nowhere. If you’re on a trail, what’s the rush? And on concrete? Meant for things with wheels or walking… your body, I believe, is not meant to take brutal weight shifts on an unyielding surface.

I ran track for two years. I ran the 400, the 4X400, the 200 hurdles, and occasionally the half. If you look at how my body has developed through the years, you’d see that I am a hybrid endomorph/mesomorph structure. That red bunchy muscle was built for speed, not endurance. My Hubby was blessed with the perfect mesomorph form. Running is a way of life for him, every spring taking to the parks or the trails to shed the winter weight, his lifelong pledge to fitness evident in his daily workouts.

After suffering from recurring knee injuries acquired through overuse and poor form in my dance training, most all high-impact activities were ruled out for me. Losing and maintaining weight loss became an uphill battle. Most of my research on the web led me to realize that both the knee injury and the weight gain played into each other. The more weight I put on, the more my knee had to carry. Of course, there are plenty of cardio solutions that don’t involve hitting the road – biking and elliptical are among my favorites. I dance twice a week, and on occasion I’ll drop in for a step, cardio kickboxing, or Zumba class. But aerobic classes are high-impact, so I have to take care when participating by listening to my body and making low-impact modifications.

My opposition to running changed when I met my sometimes-trainer, Dee. Part of the fitness module included bursts of cardio: jumping rope, step-ups, up-downs, high steps and of course, running in place. This seemed inane: running nowhere for 45 seconds.

“I’m not a runner, you know,” I said to Dee. He laughed and looked at his watch.

“You will be when I’m done with you,” he replied. “I want to see some sweat.”

Dee shared with me his own running story: he used to run a 5K everyday as a Marine.  Now 2 years out, he still runs everyday.

So when I walked into the gym to find my usual elliptical occupied, I thought I’d hit the treadmill to walk and get the blood flowing. The urge to push the pace nagged me. I stepped briskly with the belt and I arrowed the speed upward. 5.8, 6.0, 6.2 and my legs moved below me. The treadmill was equipped with a red dot indicating my position on a fictitious track . I watched as my dot-self progressed around the loop, resetting when I arrived at the next lap. I pressed on. And before I knew it, I was 1 mile in.

Some days later, I reattempted the mile, pushed on and added another half. My legs didn’t mind the numbing thump on the belt and my knees responded gratefully to the change. I decided it was time to take the show on the road. I could comfortably run at a 6.2 mile pace on the treadmill, how different could it be on pavement? The answer: incredibly different. The resistance and action of pushing yourself off the ground versus the forward momentum and backward movement on the treadmill requires additional stamina and coordination.

Hubby and I took to the lake, 3.7 miles of flat paved paths. I set the pace and began strong. A half mile in, I began to feel the imbalance in my stride – my right leg and calf stiffened. I knew I couldn’t push on too much longer without risking compensation injury and I opted to turn around and push the .75 miles back to the car while Hubby worked through his shin splints on the remainder of the trail.

The fresh air gives me so much more freedom to be unencumbered by headphones and television and the monotony of a stationary cardio workout. In two days, I’ll reattempt the run alone, hoping to push past my previous breaking point and cover additional ground. It won’t happen over night, and I may never be able to run all 3.7 miles, but it’s another goal for me to work toward in my quest for fitness.

Get Fit Carlie at Home: 15 minute circuit

A year ago I invested in a pair of five-pound hand weights to keep around the house along with a yoga mat. I used my $15 gym for light circuits that complimented my cardio workouts, but they also acted as a great substitute for days I needed a quick workout and didn’t have time for the 20 minute commute to and from the gym.

I recently moved into a new house and most of my stuff has been misplaced – this includes one of my hand weights. Without a pair to use, I thought circuits would be a lost cause. But I woke up from a post-work nap and had an hour and a half to get a workout, shower, and dinner before I needed to be at a NCAA Sweet 16 Party.

I found the one hand weight I had and a can of paint. I moved my stereo to the living room and I came up with following circuit to get a good sweat. (Note: One thing I learned from my trainer was to do things for time limits instead of reps. It helps you concentrate on breathing and form instead of speeding to completion. Better form is an overall better workout, so if you get tired, hold a position for 15 seconds instead of moving.)

This was one of my more unusual circuits and it lacked a little flow, similar to my dynamic workouts with my trainer. Goal is to get a new set of 8 lb. hand weights to do circuits at home with our punching bag.

What I listened to: Black Eyed Peas - The E.N.D

• Jumping Jacks - 1 minute
• High-Step with 5 lb weight – 1 minute (hold weight by the ends and extend your arms straight in front)
• Push-Ups – 30 seconds (whenever I do modified push-ups, I’ll go for 15 seconds more)
• Oblique Crunch – 15 reps each side
• Turn-n-touch* – 1 minute
• One-Leg drops – 20 reps
• Push-Ups – 30 seconds
• Wall Squat – 1 minute
• One-leg balanced Row with paint can as weight – 30 seconds on each side
• High-Step with 5 lb weight – 30 seconds
• Plank – 1 minute
• Lateral Leg Lifts – 30 seconds each side
• Squats with Paint Can (as kettle ball) – 45 seconds

*Turn n Touch with weight: in sit-up position, lift feet off the ground so that lower legs are parallel to the ground; hold weight between hands at chest level and keep your elbows out, twisting slowly to touch the weight to the left side, twisting slowly to the center, then twisting to the right and touching the weight to the ground, repeat. Use your core to keep the V position.

What kind of circuits are you doing at home and what are your tools?  What kind of workouts are in your repertoire?

Oatmeal Meatballs

A few weeks ago I premade old fashioned oatmeal to eat at work, but after a few days I grew tired of the monotony and brought home the tub-o-oats and tossed it in the freezer.  I hate wasting food, so when I have leftovers I need to get creative.  And getting my fiancee to eat whole grains is like feeding a child - if he knows they're in something, he protests.  Thankfully, plain oatmeal is a great filler for a lot of things.

My fiancee, an avid runner, loves pasta.  Lately I've been watching my carb intake, but that doesn't mean I need to be pasta-less.To make the meal filling but not heavy, I've modified my meatballs to "beef " them up and stretch the ingredients.  Here is my recipe for Oatmeal Meatballs which I served with Rebekah's Sauce and Whole Foods spinach spaghetti.  I'll share Rebekah's sauce at a different time when I can fully describe it, but any homemade tomato sauce will do.  I'm using some leftover Rebekah's sauce that I froze from a month ago (still good!)  and mixing it up with some fresh ingredients.

Oatmeal Meatballs

Need:  Bowl for mixing, medium frying pan, pasta pot, oven-safe baking dish (I used a pie pan)

Ingredients:
1/2 - 1/3 lb 90% lean ground beef
1/2 cup left-over cooked plain oatmeal (bulgur wheat, groats, corn meal all work great)
1/4 cup finely shredded carrots
1/4 cup minced yellow onions
1 tbsp breadcrumbs
1/2 tsp italian herbs
1/2 tsp dried basil
olive oil
salt & pepper

Heat oven to 400 degrees.

Mix the ingredients above until thoroughly combined and shape into 1 1/2 inch balls.  Place the meatballs into the baking dish at least a quarter-inch apart. Drizzle olive oil over the meatballs and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper.  Bake in oven for 20 - 25 minutes or until the insides are cooked thoroughly and show no pink.

While the meatballs are baking, prepare homemade sauce.  Here's a doctored version of Rebekah's sauce that uses left over sauce, 1 can of diced tomatoes, 1/4 of a yellow onion, and two cloves of garlic.  Sautee the onion and garlic, adding the tomatoes and the frozen sauce and simmer until the meatballs are ready.

I prepared 1/2 lb  of spinach spaghetti (I had cooked the other half on two other occassions) according to the package directions.

The meatballs turned out light, moist, and flavorful with a slight crunch to the outside.

I kept the presentation simple.  Create a small nest of pasta, place three meatballs, sauce.  Sprinkle some Parmesan cheese, garnish with fresh parsley or cilantro.

I love how this dish is full of bright, simple flavors.  The meatballs are delicate but filling... and you wouldn't even know that there are whole grains tucked away in there.

Enjoy!

Cardio, Abs, & Legs 3-24-2010

I used today's workout to get some real focus on my Abs, but I always have some element of cardio to keep my workout more dynamic.  Considering the amount of legwork I did during cardio, I laid off the weights.

35 minutes, intervals: elliptical
10 minutes, walk/run treadmill

Abs:
20 straight crunches
20 punch sit-ups (in the up position, "shadow box", punching right cross then left cross and return to the reclined position)
20 twists with 10lb weight (in the up position, hold the weight at chest level with your elbows pointed outward.  Twist the upper body to the left and touch the weight to the ground, twist to return to center.  Repeat this same movement to the right and return to the center.)
20 oblique crunches with 10lb weight
2 minutes of slow leg drops (on your back, legs extended into the air creating a 90 degree angle, slowly lower your legs until you are an inch from the ground, and bring your legs back up to the perpendicular position and repeat for 2 minutes)

Core:
1 minute - Plank
2 minutes - Side Plank (1 minute on each side)
2 minutes - Leg/Arm balance (from a table position, extend and lift the right leg to create an even plane with your spine.  Balancing and using your core, left your left arm straight out infront of your body.  From a side view, your limbs should create a table inline with your spine.  Repeat on the other side.)

Legs:
1 minute Squats with 10 lb. weight (perform squat, upon returning to standing, press the weight above your head.  Slowly lower and return to squat)
20 reps Jane Fondas (from table position, kick your heel straight up above your hip squeezing your gluts to focus energy)

Weekly Poll: How often do you work out?

A recent article in the magazine Fitness covered the excessive habits of women who worked out too much. So I want to ask my friends and readers, how often do you work out? How much working out is too much? Have you ever felt awful when you skip a day at the gym? Cast your vote on the right-hand side poll and sound off with your comments below!

Weeks to Go: 9

Weeks to Go: 9

I've never been partial to countdowns. Generally, the process of creating a countdown is daunting. And I question just how accurate my tabulation is, eventually recalibrating until I get a number that is a single digit. Nine - nine weeks.

My goal when I began the fitness binge was to lose weight for my wedding. I had been 134 pounds when I graduated from college and after two and a half years in the sedentary workforce with a diet of beer, 45 cent wings, and fast food, I ballooned to nearly 150 lbs. Balloon is an exaggeration for some, but on my five-foot-four-inch frame, I was carrying 20 pounds over my recommended weight with 29-percent of my body composition being body-fat. No matter how you spin it, the percentage of fat I on my body was enough to alert me. In January, ramped up my work-outs with a trainer and a gym membership.

I am now six pounds away from my short goal: my weight during my senior year of college. Knowing where I need to be in nine weeks, six pounds seems incredibly attainable. To keep myself accountable, I'm starting this blog in addition to a Twitter Feed @GetFitCarlie. I hope that keeping a blog about my diet and my workout will help keep me on track. I want to share recipe and menu ideas on a budget. I'll post updates on my progress (and photos - gasp) as well as daily workout routines.

I believe in practicing what you preach, and I hope my philosophy for honesty and discipline help you make healthy choices everyday.





*Disclaimer: The author of this blog has no professional or medical expertise in the fields of exercise physiology, dietetics, and nutrition, nor does the author claim to have certification or special knowledge regarding any topics covered in this publication. The Menus and workouts offered in this blog chronicle that of the author's daily practices and are not intended to be used in the absence of professional medical advice. Use commonsense and caution before attempting any fitness routines. Before starting any exercise regimen, consult your physician.*