Secret to Spaghetti Squash

I've been enjoying spaghetti squash as a good, low carb side item with my tilapia and broccoli. Its a large vegetable, so it goes a long way. My only complaint about it, until recently, was that "it takes too long to cook." However, I shouldn't have been complaining because I would simply cut it open and bake the halves in a little water at 350 degrees for 45minutes while I went and did cardio.

Thanks to a tip from a nice woman in my Monday 7pm Spin class at Meyerland I can now cook it faster and easier (the American way right?). However, this fast food won't clog the arteries and add inches to the waist or hips.

"Enough commentary...share the secret!" you say? Ok, the secret is that we no longer have to wait to eat this dish AND we are using the microwave so we are saving $$ on energy! The secret to this secret is in step #3:

1) Cut the squash in half
2) Scoop out the seeds
3) Cook/microwave the with the meat(insides) down or skin/shell up in a microwavable dish for 15 minutes (a little more if the insides don't easily string apart with a fork)
4) Take a shower while it cooks; optional. (if you are like me you are cooking this as a fast, healthy food option after leaving the gym)
5) Scrape the insides with a fork to create the spaghetti.
6) Add healthy sides or toppings

Spill your secret to great recipes, sides, or toppings that involve spaghetti squash! "Inquiring minds want to know."

If you want a recipe idea that includes this FABULOUS veggie, look under recipes on my website: www.fit2befab.com.



Stay FITABULOUS!

Eating Fit & Fabulous on a Friday Night

"I eat healthy during the week, but something about the weekend throws me off track."

I've heard this common sentiment many times and can personally attest to the phenonena as well. We eat our GRILLED, BAKED (not fried) fish, chicken, and lean beef with veggies and water all week with minimal to no problems. Yet, on Friday at 5pm, maybe earlier for others, all that focus and willpower is left at work on the desk with the "to-do" list that we plan to return to Monday morning.

So what happens? There are a number of answers to this question, but the one I want to focus on is: social eating and drinking. We go out to eat with our friends, family, and spouses and we reach for the comfort foods because in our minds the weekend and socializing says "relax." In this society we are always working hard so we do NEED to relax because we don't want to have heart attacks from stress or binge eating because of overly strict dieting. However, let me encourage you to "relax with consciousness".

Last night I "relaxed with consiousness" on date night with my boyfriend at Chili's. I'll admit there were lots of entrees that appealed to my senses based on the descriptions and pictures(i.e. chili cheese fries). Yet, I was conscious of the fact that:

1)I didn't want to feel guilty afterwards

2)I certainly didn't plan to stay up late or get up early this morning to attempt to burn off the calories.

Thus, I had the Margarita Chicken plate that was described as "tender, juicy chicken breast, marinated with our classic Margarita flavoring and grilled to perfection. Served with rice, black beans, tortilla strips & pico de gallo." Sounds great right? In fact it was! I substituted the rice for steamed broccoli and had the strips and pico on the side because I didn't know how much they would put on there; which wound up being a good serving size of a couple table spoons. I drank tea and refrained from dessert. I ate fit and left feeling fabulous because I wasn't too full and I knew I wasn't going to have to get up this morning and try to hurt myself in my workout like I do many of you in my classes. Haha!

Stay fit and fabuolus on the weekdays AND weekends! Yet, if you get off track or have a hard time staying focused on your health and fitness goals email me at: shouse@staciehouse.net to get fitness training or nutrition coaching. Don't forget to visit www.fit2befab.com for a list of other health and fitness services that I can provide to you or others close to you.

What's on my plate?

It's no secret that I LOVE Mexican food. Houston is a great place for Mexican cuisine lovers because there are tons of good Mexican restaurants, but Mexican restaurants are not always great for the waistline or hips. Therefore, I often strive to mingle the zesty Latin flavors with my the typical healthy basics.



Tonight I didn't feel like cooking so I dipped into my 1 pound of pre-cooked chicken breast from My Fit Foods and microwave steamed some green beans. My fast but fabulous healthy dinner consisted of 40z of chicken breast and 40z of green beans that I embellished with fresh salsa and sprinkles of cumin and chili pepper.



Fab Food Facts about my dinner:


1) The salsa pumped me with lycopene because its made from tomatoes. These carotenoids are being studied for their role in preventing various types of cancer, particularly prostate cancer as well as heart disease prevention.



2) The chili powder was good for my joints. Research shows that capsaicin, found in chili peppers, has an anti-inflammatory effect, which may help ease arthritic swelling and pain.



3) The cumin powder has a list of health benefits that I will share with you later. However, I'm most thankful for its immune-boosting power and digestion advantage. Cumin improves digestion and relieves many common digestive ailments, including flatulence (gas), bloating, diarrhea, nausea and indigestion.



Now who says Mexican food can't be healthy? Maybe the person who has to have the chips and the Margarita. Perhaps, we can make those fit and fabulous too!!!



Be fit & fabulous today and everyday!

What on my Grocery List?

This week I will need:

Egg whites
Steel cut oatmeal
Blueberries
Mahi-Mahi fish
Extra-Lean Ground Turkey Meat
Fresh salsa
Romaine Lettue Hearts
Red bell pepper
Zucchini
Spaghetti squash
Wild rice
Corn tortillas
Lime juice

Stay tuned for what I will do with these ingredients, which will include preparing the Recipe of the Month that you will find at my website: http://www.fit2befab.com/

Let me know if we have the same things in our basket and refrigerator. Share with me what you do with your materials too!

Have a FABULOUS and healthy day and week!

Ginger Chicken(from My Fit Foods) tastes great, is low in calories, how in carbs, and high in fat burning potential!

Nutrition: Hot Cereals for a Hot Body

"Breakfast is the most important meal of the day" health experts, including myself, often say. I love breakfast for both it's metabolism boosting power and the flavor too!

Yogurt, fruit, wheat toast with peanut butter, cottage cheese, and cold cereal with berries are some of the items on my breakfast list. However, I usually(especially during competition season) eat egg whites and hot cereal with some Truvia/Stevia. Check out the differences in the starches/carbs that I eat in the morning to fuel my day.

1/2 cup GRITS - Quaker- uncooked
Caloris: 289
Protein: 7
Carbs: 62
Fat: 1

1/2 cup OATMEAL - Quaker, uncooked
Calories: 140
Protein: 5
Carbs: 26
Fat: 3

1/2 cup CREAM OF RICE
Caloris: 320
Protein: 5.5
Carbs: 71.5
Fat: 0.5

1/2 cup QUINOA
Calories: 313
Protein: 12
Carbs: 54.5
Fat: 5

Sports Nutrition: The Figure/Fitness Competitor & Marathoner

My exicitement about my Figure and Fitness competition victory has settled down to make way for my excitement about training for a 1/2 marathon! I'm not tossing my blingy swim suit and clear stripper shoes yet though. My figure/fitness competition season will last until the September, so I thought doing a 1/2 marathon would be great for my current training regimen and prove to be a great challenge for me afterwards.


I haven't really liked running in the past, but I'm working on improving my mentality and performance. Thus, I've got the motivation, discipline, a pair of running shoes, running shorts, but not the diet...yet. From what I can see and what I've been told the marathoners' diet is quite different that of a fitness or figure competitor.

Event Diet/Nutrition
As a marathoner the energy to perform during the training sessions comes primarily from the glycogen stores in your muscles and blood system. As a fitness/figure competitor we use the same theory to apply to intense weight lifting sessions and, sometimes, frequent or long cardio sessions. This is because the more glycogen you have stored, the better you will perform.



The definition of good performance for these sports, however, are not the same, so the pre-competition diet is different. The runners' goal is to have enough energy to finish the race; to have and maintain physical and mental endurance. Therefore, the runners' typical daily intake or meal is comprised of 25% proteins, 25% fats, and 50% carbohydrates. Whereas, the fitness/figure competitors' goal is to have muscle and be lean on the day of the competition, so the diet is more like 50% protein, 15% fats, and 25% carbohydrates.

As I get more involved in running I will have more to share about it because I'll be learning more, so if you are already a runner please share your thoughts and suggestions.

In the meantime, I'm a figure/fitness competitor that is working on my goal of inspiring you and others while I push myself to be in the best shape and condition of my life.

Let's all be fit & fabulous at whatever we do!