The World's sugar addiction - video

This video is about the sugar addiction that our world is going through and the harm that it is doing to our bodies.

Healthy chicken salad- No Mayo!

Very simple and delicious dish..enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1 Chicken breast, grilled or cooked anyway you like
• 3 stalks celery, chopped
• 1 cup chopped apple about 1 large
• ¼ cup dried craisin blueberries or cranberries
• ¼ cup of golden raisins
• ½ cup of Vegenaise
• 2 tablespoons greek yogurt
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice (optional)
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley (optional)
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 100% whole wheat bread, toasted

Directions:

Cook or grill up your chicken breast. I used my George Foreman grill. Make sure to salt and pepper it before grilling. 

Cut up your celery and apples and add them to a bowl. Then just add the rest of the ingredients and spoon them together. I served this as an open faced sandwich on toasted 100% whole wheat bread.

Scallop spinach pasta

This is a dish that my mom just made up on a whim while she was out here in Washington visiting. After they left, I went ahead and made it myself.

What you need:

• Spinach Spaghetti Style Pasta
• Half the bag of Petite Scallops, defrosted
• 2 hand fulls of Spinach
• 1 tbs Sesame Oil
• 1 tsp Louisiana seafood seasoning (or any kind of seafood seasoning)
• 2 tbs Sun Ripened Dried Tomato- pesto

Step 1

Boil the spinach spaghetti style pasta

Step 2

Sautee the scallops in the sesame oil until cooked through, then season the scallops with the seafood seasoning

Step 3

Add the pasta, pesto, and the spinach to the scallops

Cook until the spinach has cooked down

This turned out really well and will be a regular in our household.

Boot Camp 3 - Partner Workout

This is a workout that I have done in the past. I have been on vacation and my parents have been visiting as well, so I have missed out on 3 workouts. I can not wait to get back into the groove of things!

This one is done with a partner. Of course you can do this alone as well.

Every partner does each exercise listed under each letter. While the one partner is doing the transient workout the other partner is doing the stationary workout until the other partner comes back. This workout was done on a basket ball court. Starting on the outside line to opposite line and back.

**As fast as you can, 2-3 times through depending on how froggy you feel**

A:
Partner 1 (P1): Walking lunges
Partner 2 (P2): Plank

B:
P1: Bear Crawl
P2: Squat Hold

C:
P1: Frog Jump
P2: Side plank switch between left and right

D:
P1: Reverse Sumo walk
P2: Push-ups


I really enjoy doing partner work outs. It really pushes you to work harder and faster so that your partner doesn't suffer while you do your workout.

Homemade Cauliflower 'Mashed Potatoes' --Life Changer!!

My parents are currently in town and eating healthier than ever, so I decided to try out something on them that I have been wanting to make for a while. Cauliflower "mashed potatoes"

First start out with one head of cauliflower. Cut it up into small to medium florets and place them in a steamer basket over a pot filled with water, but not touching the base of the steamer basket.

Bring the water to a boil and cover and steam the cauliflower for 10-15 min. or until you are able to cut the cauliflower like butter with a knife.


While the cauliflower is steaming, roast your garlic with olive oil in a pan for about 2 minutes.


Once the cauliflower is steamed all the way through. Grab your food processor and add in half of the cauliflower and turn the food processor on high. After this keep adding the rest of the cauliflower. Continue to blend. Once all of the cauliflower is in the food processor it is time to add the rest of the ingredients. Add the garlic/oil blend, parmesan cheese, cream cheese, salt, and pepper. Continue blending until all of the ingredients are blended and the cauliflower is creamy.

**You might need to get a spoon in there and mix up the bottom and the top to make sure it blends completely**

****For an extra healthy version, try greek yogurt and fresh chives instead of cream cheese***


What you will need:

• 1 head of cauliflower, cut into florets
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil
• 1 clove of garlic, diced
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
• 1 tablespoon of reduced-fat Philadelphia cream cheese onion and chives.
• 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt
• 1/8 teaspoon of ground black pepper

The result: Great reviews! Everyone loved it. My Dad commented on how he felt like he was eating mashed potatoes, but didn't get that heavy feeling that you get after eating them. It was very light! We paired it with fresh caught salmon and peas!

Working out during vacation

Yesterday Ryan and I just got back from a trip to Vancouver, BC and Whistler, BC Canada. It was a fantastic trip! I highly suggest going to both of theses places. One of the best part about this trip was the drive between Vancouver and Whistler. There were mountains covered in glaciers all around with green/blue water at its base.

One of the activities that Ryan and I always do when we are on vacation is go on a hike. Normally more than one hike in a trip. This is probably one of my favorite things that we do together. I believe hiking is the best way to get out and really see the sites that normal 'tourist' sites don't provide.

The best part is that you are WORKING OUT! You can burn a lot of calories depending on the intensity of the hike. Usually on vacation I over eat and over drink..oops. So, with hiking this really helps me keep in check and not go too overboard.

So how many calories do you actually burn during your hike? Here is a calculator!
http://www.self.com/calculatorsprograms/calculators/caloriesburned/hiking

How many calories does your body burn during rest?

Have you ever wondered how much your body burns when your just sitting on the couch watching tv?

 Knowing how much your body burns by doing practically nothing can really help you know how much you should intake to either stay the same weight, lose weight, or maybe even gain weight.

 In order to figure this out you must determine your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR).

 Here is how you determine BMR:

 Women: BMR = 665 + (4.35 x weight in lbs) + (4.7 x height in inches) – (4.7 x age in years)

 Men: BMR = 66 + (6.23 x weight in lbs) + (12.7 x height in inches) – (6.8 x age in years)

 So in order to lose weight you need to give yourself an accurate and honest assessment of your activity level per day. Multiply the appropriate number by your BMR to determine caloric intake requirements.

 1. sedentary 1.2
 2. lightly active (1-3 light exercies/week) 1.375
 3. moderately active (moderate exercise/bootcamp 3-5 x/week) 1.55
 4. very active (hard exercise/bootcamp 6-7 x/week) 1.75
 5. extra active (very hard exercise/sports/physical job. 2x/day training) 1.9

 If your goal is to lose weight the best way to do this is by decreasing your calorie intake according to what you got from the formula.
You should decrease your daily calorie intake by 15-20%. You can do this by just dieting alone or a combination of less food intake and working out.

Boot Camp 2

Whew, so today's workout was a doozy. Mainly because there was running and sprinting involved and that always gets my heart rate rockin'.

The workout was done on a track today. There were 4 points on the track where we had to stop and do a certain workout. The points were on either side of the curves of the track and at the beginning/end of the straight aways if that makes sense.

Equipment:
Medium to heavy dumbbells

Lap 1- 10 push-ups at every cone (40 total)

1. Jog (the curves)
2. Sprint (the straight aways)
3. Jog
4. Sprint

Make sure you stop at every point to do 10 push-ups

Lap 2-   20- plank rows (10 on each side with dumbbells) This lap is with dumbbells the whole time

1. Walking lunges with bicep curl (this is around the curve in between the cones)
2. Overhead carry speed walk (arms are straight over your head)
3. Walking lunges (again on the curve)
4. Overhead carry speed walk

Lap 3- 30 Jumping jacks at every cone (total 120)

1. Frog Jump Burpees (do a frog jump then down into a burped, this is around the curve)
2. Side shuffle (make sure you are in a squat stance leading with the middle of your foot)
3. Knee to elbow walk (around the curve)
4. Side Shuffle (make sure to lead with the other side)

Lap 4-  Run backwards

This workout was for 45 min. Do as many rounds as possible. 

The last thing got to do was 40m sprints/jog back x4..joy.

Dinner tonight-- Moroccan Stew

Okay, I am in no way starting doing a food blog, but I would like to fill this up with a little bit of healthy meals that I eat from time to time..like this little gem.

I know its in the middle of the summer, but this dish is delish. And very healthy!!

Ingredients:

Veggies

• 2 large cloves of garlic, minced (or the squeezy garlic which is what I used)
• 1 large onion, diced
• 4 carrots, peeled and diced
• 1 red pepper, seeded and diced
• 1 bunch of kale, chopped and tough stems
• 1 bunch parsley, chopped
• 1 can (28oz) diced tomatoes with juice

The rest

• 1 tablespoon of olive oil
• 1 can of chickpeas (drained)
• 2.5 cups of vegetable broth
• 2 tablespoons cumin
• 2 teaspoons coriander
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 1 teaspoon of black pepper
• 1 cup of rice for the stew to lay over (optional)

Directions:

Grab yourself a big bowl and add the olive oil, onion, carrots, red pepper, garlic, spices, chick peas, tomatoes and juice, cinnamon sticks, and vegetable broth and combine together. 

Cook on high for 4-6 hours. All really depends on your crock pot

20 minutes before serving put the crock pot on 'warm' setting and then add the kale. Just before serving, add parsley and season to taste with salt and pepper. Remove the cinnamon sticks and serve over rice. 

This recipe yields 4 servings.

Boot Camp 1

Every Monday and Wednesday I attend this workout class called combat warrior on base. It is a 'cross-fit' style workout that is FREE! I love this class and I am going to list the work outs that I have done for this class on here. So I can keep track of them and maybe you can suffer through it if you'd like.

This was the one yesterday..

Equipment:

• Medium weight dumbbells
• Medium weight kettle bells
• 1 circular resistance band

This workout was done with partners, but it is not necessary.

First round: 18 minutes as many rounds as possible

Partner 1:

Run 2 laps around the track

Partner 2:

18 plank rows (with dumbbells)

11 rear delt fly

13 release push-ups (lift your hands up in between each push-up)

15 kettle bell swings

Second round: 18 minutes as many rounds as possible

Partner 1:

2 side shuffle suicides with circular resistance band around your thighs

Partner 2:

9 burpee press with dumbbells

11 squat presses with dumbbells

13 push-ups

15 crunches

I loved this workout! We did this outside..it was so nice outside. The partner that I had for this workout was great and we kicked everyones asses (yes even the guys). I am very competitive, so this class is perfect for me!

My current passion

Every Monday and Wednesday I attend this workout class called combat warrior on base. It is a 'cross-fit' style workout that is FREE! I love this class and I am going to list the work outs that I have done for this class on here. So I can keep track of them and maybe you can suffer through it if you'd like.

This was the one yesterday..

Equipment:

• Medium weight dumbbells
• Medium weight kettle bells
• 1 circular resistance band

This workout was done with partners, but it is not necessary.

First round: 18 minutes as many rounds as possible

Partner 1:

Run 2 laps around the track

Partner 2:

18 plank rows (with dumbbells)

11 rear delt fly

13 release push-ups (lift your hands up in between each push-up)

15 kettle bell swings

Second round: 18 minutes as many rounds as possible

Partner 1:

2 side shuffle suicides with circular resistance band around your thighs

Partner 2:

9 burpee press with dumbbells

11 squat presses with dumbbells

13 push-ups

15 crunches

I loved this workout! We did this outside..it was so nice outside. The partner that I had for this workout was great and we kicked everyones asses (yes even the guys). I am very competitive, so this class is perfect for me!

Introduction

I feel like I should set a theme up of what this blog should be about.

I think while writing out this so called "theme" I am in turn explaining it to myself as well. I think I will start out with explaining the title of the blog. The Wholesome Mermaid. The definition of wholesome is "conducive to or suggestive of good health and physical well-being." The word mermaid to me is an important one because I have been called one my whole life. Or I have been called part-fish. Which is practically the same thing. So, if you know me I have been competitively swimming since I was 4 years old and it has been "part" of my life ever since.

The love of swimming helped me develop myself into a well-rounded healthy person. While swimming through adolescence it carried me though college as well. Throughout college I fell in love with the science of exercise and nutrition. The result was a bachelors of science degree from College of Charleston in Physical Education with a concentration in Health Promotion.

So I guess I can say that the "theme" of this blog shall be multiple things...
>Health
>Fitness
>Swimming
>Nutrition
>Coaching
>Outdoors
>Recreation
>Love
>Life


Enjoyyy!