FitRinny Recipe: Lemon Feta Chicken

Chicken is one of the easiest, leanest protein sources around. If you are tired of the barbecue and plain roasted varieties, try this simple, tasty version. If you are avoiding dairy, just skip the feta and add a little salt.

Lemon Feta Chicken

Ingredients

• 4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves (4 ounces each)
• 2 to 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon pepper

Directions

• Place chicken in a 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish coated with cooking spray. Pour lemon juice over chicken; sprinkle with feta cheese, oregano and pepper.
• Bake, uncovered, at 400° for 20-25 minutes or until a meat thermometer reads 170°.
  

Four servings, with each roughly 170 calories, 8g fat, 1.5g carbohydrates and 24g protein.

Dear Mr. Scale

Today you are my friend. Amazing how a good number from you can start my day with a smile. The opposite - an unexpected increase or dreaded plateau - and watch out. My mood will be low, I might be snappish and heaven forbid my spouse tell me I “look beautiful.” Grrrrh.

I’m just guessing you are male, although more likely you are female…we are so much more judgmental and critical.

Why do you have this power over me? My rational side knows you are an inanimate object that just spits out a number, yet even now after years of our love hate relationship, my heart still races when I step on. I know deep down that I have control over you and your results, not vice versa, but you still scare and thrill me a little.

Thankfully, my decision to check in with you daily has taken most of your power over me away. I know my number, accept it and do what I need to either maintain it or change it.

You have helped me finally attain a weight that I am happy with, so thank you. After years and years…and years…I am accepting my number and have no desire to drastically change it. My goal now is to improve my overall health, fitness and strength.

So, today was a good day, but I know that tomorrow might not be. And it might not be because of anything I’ve done or not done. Our daily meetings have shown me one thing…the body is fluid. Weight ebbs and flows. As long as I am taking the right steps and eating properly, you will react accordingly, in your own time. An increase could have been a result of hormones, soy sauce marinade or heck, just a change in my sleep habits. I promise not to panic if I see an unexpected number, although I may still be cranky. See you in the morning.

The 80/10/10 Guide to Weight Loss

People often ask me what is the best workout for weight loss.  They are surprised when I tell them it isn't really about exercise, it is about diet.  Weight loss is 80% diet, 10% exercise and 10% genetic.

Genetics will determine some of how your body responds.  Lucky folks lose more quickly than the masses.  Men, with their increased muscle mass, take off weight much more easily than most women.  However, these are factors out of your control so focus on the two you can control - diet and exercise.

I know from personal experience that weight loss is mostly dependent on my diet.  This concept has been reinforced over the last three weeks as I've followed a detox cleanse eating plan.  I've lost 5+ pounds and actually been working out less!  For 21 days I've done yoga, light cardio and haven't even wear my heartrate monitor...and guess what?  Those pesky few pounds I've been struggling with are gone because I eliminated crappy carbs and kept my caloric intake steady.  All diet.

If you look at the numbers, it makes sense that diet is more important.  A typical gym session will only burn 500-600 calories (and that is if the person is really pushing themselves).  I know I can wolf down 600 calories in about ten minutes with a plate of brie, french bread, chocolate and a bottle of wine.  No matter how hard we try, or how badly we want to, we cannot "burn off" our caloric indulgences.

Now, I'm not saying don't exercise.  Quite the opposite.  Exercise should be a foundation and should be done routinely as part of a wellness regiment.   I do cardio and resistance training most days of the week, but I don't factor the caloric burn into my daily targets -- exercise is assumed and is a non-issue.   I workout because it makes me feel good and strong...not because it is burning a measly 300 calories.  When exercise becomes more important is during the maintenance phase.  Once the weight is off and dietary restrictions ease up slightly, exercise is crucial to keeping it off.

As the pressure to get summer bathing suit ready approaches, remember to focus your effort on what makes the greatest impact -- diet.  Don't worry about whether you burned 300 or 500 calories in your spin class...focus on what you will eat AFTER your spin class.

How Bad is Strawberry Milk?

After watching last week's episode of Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution where Jamie went on a mission to remove flavored milk from the schools, I wondered how bad the flavored milk actually was.  So,  I checked it out on Calorie Count and in one cup:

Plain 1% Milk:

102 calories

2.5g fat

12g carbs (12g sugar)

8g protein

Strawberry 1% Milk and Chocolate 1% Milk:

180 calories

2.5g fat

26g carbs (26g sugar)

7g protein

The major (only) difference is the amount of carbs/sugar.  At first glance, it might not seem like that is a big deal, just 14 grams of sugar.  But one teaspoon of sugar is 4 grams.  Thus, the flavored milks have almost 4 extra teaspoons of sugar in one cup!

Unbelievably, the schools defended the flavored varieties saying they increased consumption.  Apparently, the schools are more concerned about children's calcium intake than their sugar intake.  Considering the childhood obesity epidemic, schools might want to rethink that stance.   

The most encouraging part of the episode was when many of the kids that ordinarily would have taken flavored milk started taking the plain milk. They did so because their teacher, after learning from Jamie about the nutritional differences, encouraged them to.  So, even if schools continue to serve flavored sugar milk, we can get our kids to choose the healthier option through education, awareness and encouragment.

Stay Active and Stay Young

"We do not stop exercising because we grow old; we grow old because we stop exercising." - Dr. Kenneth Cooper

Part of my motivation to exercise comes from wanting to put off the inevitable, delaying the eventual inability to do physical activities that I currently take for granted. I remember my Grandmother taking forever (for-e-ver!) to get out of her Buick.  She couldn't ride bikes and by 80, she couldn't climb stairs. I refuse to be that woman. Or at least I refuse to go down without a fight. 

One thing I try to remember is that it is so much easier to maintain fitness than to build it back up from scratch.  Stay active and stay young.

FitRinny Fave: Friendship 1% Lowfat Whipped Cottage Cheese

"It's Gold Jerry, Gold!" 

I love this cottage cheese and barrel through a 16oz container every day or so.  Here's why:

• Light, yet creamy 
• Fluffy and isn't soupy like many other brands
• Only 90 calories per serving
• High in protein with 16 grams per 1/2 cup 
• Only 3 grams of carbohydrates and 1 gram of fat  
• Like most cottage cheese, it is a little high in sodium, but since sodium isn't a major concern of mine, I'm okay with it.  

I only wish it was from an organic dairy farm.  Sadly not.  

Friendship 1% Lowfat Whipped Cottage Cheese can be found at Giant and Wegman's.

Top 10 Gym Pet Peeves

I wish I wasn't, but I am really easily irritated.  Not sure what that says about me...maybe that I grew up with a Dad and sister who were even more easily irritated, so they called my attention to otherwise trivial noises and behaviors.  I know people aren't trying to get on my nerves and usually they are just oblivious.  The gym has some of the worst offenders.  Here are my top ten:

10.  Squatters --  No, I'm not referring to people doing actual squats.  This is when someone just sits on machines, resting a ridiculously long time between sets.   Either push the weight or get off
9.  Worker-Inners -- "Can I work in?"  Seriously?  There are plenty of other machines and Joe Muscle has to come work in with me on the cable fly.
8.  Sweaters -- Nope, not referring to a wool knit.  These gems leave their sweat pool whereever they go and don't wipe down the equipment after they've used it.
7.  Daters -- people who use the gym as a pick-up joint.  I guess I'm used to it with men, but it is especially cheesy when women do it.  My old gym was full of these chicks who dressed provocatively and talked to any guy who would give them the time of day.
6.  Stinkers -- either because of B.O. or cologne/perfume.  Nothing is worse than getting a big whiff, particularly if I'm already gasping for air doing cardio intervals.
5.  Noisemakers -- Excessive noise, whether grunting, dropping weights or cracking gum.  
4.  Out of shape aerobics instructors -- if you can't make it work for you, why should I believe it will work for me?
3.  Women who only lift tiny, colorful dumbbells.  Come on ladies, you are stronger than that.  I promise, lift heavier...you won't "bulk up."

2.  Chatters -- People who do more talking than working out.  Chatters are especially annoying when they are on the machine next to me.  If you can carry on a full conversation, particularly if that conversation is on a cell phone (major gym faux pas) you are obviously not working hard enough.

1.  Not reracking weights -- This is when men (yes, it is usually men), load up the chest press or squat racks, do their sets and then just leave the weights on the bar.  They are relying on the next person, namely me and my scrawny arms, to struggle with their 45s.  Please, for the love of Pete, just return the plates back to where you found them!  

Did I miss any of your gym pet peeves?