Saturday 30 May 2015

Healthy Spicy Mince on Toast


Mince on toast is such comfort food for me, and it's especially good on a cold day! Using avocado instead of butter or margarine is a great way to add some healthy fat to your diet.

Recipe:
2 slices Gluten Free Venerdi ancient multi-grain bread (or use other thin bread if not GF)
100g lean beef mince
1 clove garlic
1 spring onion
50g frozen spinach, defrosted
1/4-1/2 teaspoon chilli powder (to your taste)
1 teaspoon gluten free soy sauce (I use Whitlocks as it's low sodium too)
1 teaspoon worcester sauce (I use Whitlocks, also lower sodium)
1/8th avocado
  1. Chop spring onion and finely chop garlic. Add to a frying pan over medium-high heat with mince. 
  2. Put your toast on (or do this first if it's frozen, gluten free bread takes a lot longer to toast than normal bread)
  3. Stir fry until mince has browned, then add spinach, chilli, worcester and soy, and cook for a further 30 seconds.
  4. Spread avocado on toast and top with mince. Easy!
Calories: 373      Carbs: 39g     Fat: 12g    Protein: 28g

© Copyright Anna McConnell 2015. All rights reserved.

Tuesday 26 May 2015

Consistency and progress

Whether you are just trying to get fitter and lose a bit of weight, or are training for a specific event, consistency with your training and nutrition (and enlisting professional advice) is key. I had a back injury last year - half way though my transformation - and it really threw me off my game! I couldn't train for a while, and because of that I let my eating habits slip. Christmas happened, then summer was incredibly busy with back to back trips away, visitors, weddings and parties.

I did start training again in January and have noticed big strength gains all year, but due to my social calendar I wasn't making any progress with fat loss. I knew this was going to be how it was, so instead of putting unrealistic expectations on myself, I simply did the best I could, didn't skip training and enjoyed having fun! My gym provides free programs from qualified personal trainers, so I have been getting a new program about every 6 weeks. My trainer has also been working in conjunction with my physiotherapist to work out any imbalances and weak spots so I don't get injured again.

I got some advice from a nutritionist on the best macros and calories for my current goals, and have been keeping myself accountable by filling in a food diary EVERY DAY. I think this is one of the most important tools to use if you have a goal, and you can download a fantastic app called My Fitness Pal to help you track everything.

I also make a point of preparing my food in advance. Tracking macros allows you to have flexibility with what you eat, so I also usually plan and prepare my meals the day before and enter them into my fitness pal. This makes it so easy if you want to eat something different or have a treat, as you can easily see where you need to take some calories from to stay on target.

The last 7 weeks have been a lot quieter socially, so I have taken the opportunity to have several alcohol free weeks and focus on my nutrition. I have lost nearly 4kg and am noticing my clothes getting looser again. I'm seeing way more definition in my muscles, and am gaining strength even quicker. It is such a good feeling when all those hours of hard work start to pay off! Losing weight slowly and gaining lean muscle is so important when it comes to keeping the weight off, because your metabolism doesn't slow down like it does with calorie restricted diets. 

You are what you eat! Bring on the body sculpting comp! 

© Copyright Anna McConnell 2015. All rights reserved.


Sunday 24 May 2015

Warm roasted vegetable and chicken salad

I always find it harder to eat salad's in the cooler months, so thought I would make one with some warm ingredients. This contains lean protein, healthy fat, low GL carbs, fibre and micronutrients. This recipe is for one (hungry!) person, multiply it for more servings.



Ingredients:
1 medium beetroot (60g cooked)
1 slice crown pumpkin (60g cooked)
Spray rice bran oil
Himalayan salt and cracked black pepper
1/4 spring onion
2 cups baby spinach
100g raw chicken breast
10 almonds
1 tbsp aged balsamic vinegar

Directions:

  1. Pre heat oven to 200 degrees celsius.
  2. Finely cube beetroot and pumpkin and place in a baking tray. Spray with rice bran oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 15-20 minutes, or until soft.
  3. Cut chicken breast and pan fry over a medium heat until brown and the juices run clear.
  4. Finely chop spring onion.
  5. Cut almonds in half, and briefly roast in a pan over a high heat, constantly stirring.
  6. Place a bed of spinach on your plate, top with roast veg, chicken, spring onion and almonds. Finish with a drizzle of aged balsamic.
Calories:283             Carbs:17g              Fat:11g                Protein: 28g 

For a higher carb meal, use potatoes or kumara instead of or as well as the pumpkin and beetroot. Mix it up by adding some avocado or goat feta. Enjoy!

© Copyright Anna McConnell 2015. All rights reserved.

Saturday 23 May 2015

Kombucha recipe

Kombucha is an incredibly healthy drink that is made from black or green tea, sugar and a symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast or "SCOBY"

Known as the “Immortal Health Elixir” by the Chinese and originating in the Far East around 2,000 years ago, kombucha has a lot of health benefits including immune support, improved digestion, detoxification and cleansing, weight loss and increased energy. 

I got my SCOBY by posting on a community facebook page, and I had 2 lovely strangers give me one, along with a bit of starter tea from their last batch. 

Ingredients:
2L boiling water (rain water is best, or purified/filtered)
2 x green or black tea bags (I use jasmine green tea)
1/2 cup sugar
1 x SCOBY
1/2 cup of starter tea

Brew your tea, dissolving the sugar inside. Wait until it has cooled, remove the tea bags then add your SCOBY and starter tea. 

Leave your kombucha brewing for 7-10 days in a glass jar with a muslin cloth or tea towel over the top, fastened with a rubber band, and kept out of direct sunlight. When you come to bottle it, take 1/2 a cup of starter tea for your next batch and the scoby out, then pour through a sieve and funnel (to remove any floaty bits). Once you have bottled it you can add fresh ginger, fresh fruit like berries, or some fruit juice. This will give the kombucha flavour, and leaving it out of the fridge for a further few days will make it fizzy. It will keep in the fridge for a few weeks before it starts to turn more vinegary in flavour (but I usually drink mine before then!) 

Kombucha contains b-vitamins, enzymes and these probiotics: Gluconacetobacter,  Acetobacter, Lactobacillus and Zygosaccharomyces.


Always use very clean hands when handling the scoby, and make sure all your bottles have been rinsed with plain water. There will sometimes be some brown stringy bits in your brew. This is completely normal and safe, and you can remove them easily. If you see your scoby start to get mould spots, throw it out and start again with a new one.

© Copyright Anna McConnell 2015. All rights reserved.