Personal Training

The Joy of Soy

Posted on by Naomi
I want to start by sharing a comment I got yesterday. I tried emailing this person back, but the email she said she used, got sent back to me with a delivery error, SO if you are reading here is what I said.

Her Email

Hi, Naomi. I don’t mean to offend with my comment, but do you really think you need all these sugar-free foods in your life? You are a happy, healthy, exuberant young woman. You put your body through so much exercise and it’s capable of so much, why limit it by denying some sugar in your life? A tablespoon in ketchup won’t harm your figure. You might say “I want to keep my calories for something else more nutritious”. OK, fair enough. But that’s a dangerous line of thinking, and since you’re definitely at a healthy weight now I’d hate to see you go down the path of obsessing with calories. Enjoy life! Stay healthy! And feel OK eating ketchup! You’re beautiful and don’t need to eliminate sugar to be that way. Just read operationbeautiful.comif you ever can’t see that.

My Response

Hi There

Thank you for your email. I first want to say that all of the newly sugar free products you see on my blog, I received from those companies for free. I have to show the packages to let the companies know I received their products and also will never turn down something for free!

If you have been a long time follower of my blog, you know that I base my life in moderation and balance. I do not believe in diets and ‘not eating’ certain foods. I have a BS in exercise science with a minor in nutrition and I am an ACSM certified personal trainer, so I am head first in the health and fitness field. I deal everyday with people who have questions about nutrition and the first thing I will tell them is to count NOTHING off limits. Dieting is not life, it is a quick fix, which most of the time doesn’t work. The key to life is having a little of this and a little of that, all in moderation. Yes, I have some products that are sugar free and enjoy them to the fullest. But maybe tomorrow I will have ice cream with chocolate chips and a slice of pizza. I do not post all of the food I eat on my blog, simply because I choose not too. What you see is a sneak peak of what I eat.

Again, thank you for your email and concern, although you have nothing to worry about, I will never in my life count calories, simply because it is a waste of time and I am not looking to lose weight. I am healthy, happy and living my life with a beautiful balance

In Health

Naomi

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HAPPY CINCO DE MAYO! I don’t know what this holiday is, but hey, everyone around me seemed to be excited about it…I have a feeling why….
And a rando Wednesday pic for you all

Anyways, moving on. I have some major recipes for you including, I believe to my my BEST muffin recipe yet! Don’t get me wrong, I love my berry chia protein muffins, chocolate cinnamon protein muffins and apple cinnamon protein muffins You also had some great guesses on last post!

I present to you:
Banana Soy Protein Muffins

Mix dry ingredients in a bowl
Mix Wet Ingredients in another bowl

Mix together until well incorporated

Spoon into muffin tins!
Ingredients

DRY
  • 1 C soy flour (I use Bobs red mill)
  • 1/2 C oats 
  • 2 tsp Baking powder
  • 1/4 C stevia baking blend (can use real sugar)
  • 3 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 C protein powder of choice (I used BSN Banana nut to make them extra banana-y)
WET
  • 1 Mashed banana (I used a really ripe one)
  • 1/2 C applesauce
  • 1/4 C almond milk (or milk of choice)
Method
  • Mix dry ingredients in 1 bowl
  • Mix wet ingredients in 1 bowl
  • Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir until well combined (do not over stir)
  • Spoon out into sprayed muffin tins ( I filled up 10)
  • Bake at 350 for about 18 minutes (my oven cooks fast! so may be a bit longer depending on your oven)
They puffed up and smelled fantastic!



And are the perfect size! I did find out the stats (the recipe was divided by 10 since I spooned out 10 muffins) Calories: 106 Carbs: 11.2 Protein: 8.6 
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Ontop of this recipe, I whipped up an awesome dinner last night inspired by Janetha!

I started sauteeing some chicken breast in white wine and garlic

Added broc and shrooms

I made an ‘alfredo’ sauce on the side using 1 Laughing cow wedge, spoonful of greek yogurt and splash of almond milk.

I used 1 cup of Carba Nada Noodles (1 serving of these is 1 1/2 C which is 160 calories, 24 carbs, 6 grams of fiber, 12 grams of protein!!)

Once the veggies were cooked through, I added the pasta (which takes about 3 minutes in boiling water) and poured the sauce over everything. I combined it and let it get hot on the stove

Dinner is served! This ROCKED. I will certainly be making it again!

I was also psyched because my roomate was next to me making my caramalized onion chicken!
Yep, My roomate and I got fro-yo. I got a large so I hate half and have half in the freezer. It was half coconut, half origninal with kiwi and bloooobs.
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This morning I went for a BEAUTIFUL 2 mile walk before breakfast. It was too nice out to sit in my apartment before work, so I took full advantage. I came back and was ready for some B-Fast

Oats in a mug!
  • 1/3 C oat bran
  • 2 eggwhites
  • 1/2 scoop protein powder
  • 4 diced fresh strawberries
  • 1/4 C frozen blueberries
  • 1 TBSP flaxseed
  • 1/2 diced banana

Oh yeah, and 1 TBSP maranatha creamy peanut butter.

Typical Onefitfoodie Salad


Typical aluminum foil wrapped WRAP. Sprouts, turkey breast, hummus, romaine, roasted red peppers
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Then, INSANITY happened. I am still loving it and was really pushing myself today, my upper body is a bit sore, and my core, but I am fighting through it and still love it. My new sneaks are rocking with these workouts because they give me that little bounce I need in the plyos!

Leftovers for dinner! Tofu, millet salad and roasted broc


I added 3 veggie balls because there wasn’t that much tofu left and I needed the PROtein!!
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When I came home I was craving something sweet, but not cold, hmmmm. I had been wanting to experiment more with my soy flour. Here goes… THE BEST PANCAKES!!

Seriously? Get soy flour JUST TO MAKE THESE!

Soy Protein Pancakes
  • 2 TBSP soy flour
  • 1/2 scoop Protein powder of choice (I used BSN banana nut)
  • 3 TBSP eggwhites
  • 1 TSP baking powder
  • 2 TBSP applesauce
  • shakes of cinnamon
  • Combine and pour onto a hot sprayed skillet

Pancake for dessert? WHY NOT?!?!?!

And now, some workout info because its been a while since I have posted some!

Common Mistakes and proper form!!
• To get the most out of your weight training routine you must use proper form on your exercises.
• Improper weight lifting can cause injuries that will hamper your progress. You also may not be targeting the muscle group you’re working out as well if you are cheating and not using proper lifting form.
REASONS
Correct muscle targeting
• Since many weightlifting exercises are targeted toward specific muscle groups, a lack of good form can cause you to work out a completely different muscle or to strain the muscle you were targeting. Proper form, on the other hand, ensures optimal results in the correct muscle group.

Reduces unnecessary stabilizing actions
• When you use bad form, a number of muscles — predominately those in your core — must work overtime to stabilize your body and try to prevent an injury from occurring. All these actions eat up available energy and significantly reduce the effectiveness of your exercises. That means more work with less results — not and ideal situation.

Enables you to lift more weight
• In order for you to lift the maximum possible weight, your muscles need to be in the ideal position to generate force. When you begin to move out of alignment, you place your muscles at unnatural angles, decreasing their functional capability. By maintain proper form, you will be able to lift a larger amount of weight, which will translate into more visible results in a shorter period of time.

Least effective exercises


#1 behind the neck lat pull down

• The problem: Only people with very mobile shoulder joints can keep their spines straight enough to do this exercise properly. So the move — done wrong — can lead to shoulder impingement or worse, a tear in the rotator cuff. And if the bar hits the back of the neck, it could injure cervical vertebrae.

#2 Military press BEHIND the neck• Incorrect: This shoulder move, in which you lift weights or a barbell up and down behind the head, can cause the same problems as the lat pull–down behind the head. Correct: keep the bar or dumbbells in front of your head. Stand with the weight no lower than the collarbone and keep your upper body upright. The exercise can also be done seated.

#3 leaning on Cardio equipment• The problem: Hunching over or using a death-grip on the handrail cheats your body and can throw off your alignment, jarring your spine, shoulders, and elbows. As tempting as it is to put the incline and speed as high as it can go but if you’re overcompensating for the fact that it’s too tough by leaning on the handles, then you’re not getting an effective workout.

#4 Exercises done to SPOT reduce
• The Problem: People who do strengthening and toning exercises in an effort to trim fat from a certain area — thighs, hips, stomach, or arms — have the wrong idea. Although these exercises can help firm muscles, if the targeted area still carries an extra layer of fat, it won’t look much different. You can’t isolate fat loss to one part of the body.
• Do This instead: Cardiovascular exercise will burn calories, but strength training is a big part of the equation if you want to burn fat. Boosting your muscle mass increases your metabolism, so you burn more calories all the time, even when you’re not working out.





Naomi
Naomi