BALANCE NOW AVAILABLE TO GENERAL PUBLIC

Hey folks, Dr. Ashry is back in town next week and we are doing the mid-trial publicity. Here is the story on my blog today, which says that the trial is going so well, that BALANCE is now available (for a fee) to the general public!

http://hartkeisonline.com/2009/07/02/fitness-first-clubs-join-the-wellness-revolution/

Pictured: Rick Thoesen and his Personal Trainer, Sandra.

Sharon W. Progress Report

Sharon W. Balance participant has been kicking it on the cardio 5 days a week, in addition to her two hours with personal trainer, Juan. She reports that she is down one pant size! I see Sharon all the time at the gym. She is really working it, and we are very proud of her accomplishments.

The important thing is, you can do it too!

Hey, check out my blog, I did an article today, with a hilarious video that Chalid showed Alana and I. See it by following the link, below.

http://hartkeisonline.com/2009/03/19/exercise-at-your-own-risk/

Farm Fresh Food Can Spur Weight Loss

Hey BALANCE folks! There is a new farmers market in Oakton, at the Unitarian Church on Hunters Mill Road.

It is Saturdays, from 10-2pm. They have organic coffee, the best Amish pasture raised chicken (melts in your mouth!) and our favorite, Piedmontese beef.

A Piedmontese breed of cow is the leanest steer in the world, they are imported from Italy. The guy that sells it, his company is called Angelic Beef. And it is out of this world. Every cut was as tender as a filet mignon. I had a skirt steak the other night and with nothing but a little salt and pepper, it was delicious. Because of the humane way these cows are raised, you can cook the beef rare or medium rare with no fear of pathogens. In fact, lean meats are better served that way. And weight loss? I know of one woman who lost 70 lbs by switching to grass-fed meats! Definitely do try it!

Get to know these farmers, they are using organic and traditional farming methods and the quality of their food is superior nutritionally to anything you can buy at the store.

This is also a fun way to live, getting to know our local farmers, supporting them with buying power, helping them to build a strong local farm economy. Wouldn't you rather see farms dotting the countryside than more urban sprawl?

Smartmarkets.org runs this market, and they have others all over, many of them open in the spring, but check out their website for more of their locations!

PHOTO: Kimberly and author of REAL FOOD, Nina Planck at the Oakton Farmers Market

Noah is Her Hero!

Ronesshia Moore is doing great in the BALANCE program. She credits her trainer Noah.

Please send in your photos or post them on the blog to encourage others!

Recipes from Alana

Breakfast:

1 or 2 boiled eggs
1 slice cheese
1 slice whole wheat toast with olive oil butter spread (below)
¼ cup (a handful) of berries or ½ green apple


Lunch:
1 whole-wheat pita bread stuffed with shrimp or chicken or tuna salad made with Canola or Safflower Mayonnaise and chopped vegetables

A side of prepared salad (leafy greens, celery, tomato, cucumber, baby spinach, carrots, etc) with an olive oil dressing


Dinner:

Baked, broiled, or grilled salmon steak
2 or 3 new potatoes, or 1 small sweet potato with cinnamon and butter spread (below)
Steamed broccoli and/or green beans and/or zucchini with extra virgin olive oil



After dinner snack:

Handful of roasted cashews and almonds
1 square of dark chocolate
1 cup of mint or herbal tea with lemon



If you need to snack:

Hummus with cut up vegetables
A small handful of nuts
1 or 2 whole rye crackers with natural peanut or almond butter
½ green apple with a slice of string cheese

Recipes from Alana

Breakfast:

1 or 2 boiled eggs
1 slice cheese
1 slice whole wheat toast with olive oil butter spread (below)
¼ cup (a handful) of berries or ½ green apple


Lunch:
1 whole-wheat pita bread stuffed with shrimp or chicken or tuna salad made with Canola or Safflower Mayonnaise and chopped vegetables

A side of prepared salad (leafy greens, celery, tomato, cucumber, baby spinach, carrots, etc) with an olive oil dressing


Dinner:

Baked, broiled, or grilled salmon steak
2 or 3 new potatoes, or 1 small sweet potato with cinnamon and butter spread (below)
Steamed broccoli and/or green beans and/or zucchini with extra virgin olive oil



After dinner snack:

Handful of roasted cashews and almonds
1 square of dark chocolate
1 cup of mint or herbal tea with lemon



If you need to snack:

Hummus with cut up vegetables
A small handful of nuts
1 or 2 whole rye crackers with natural peanut or almond butter
½ green apple with a slice of string cheese

Something Fun with your Fitness

Hi all!

Not long after the Balance program launched two months ago, there were some inquiries about setting up a kind of 'buddy system' for those participants who were interested in sharing their experiences with one another. Of course, this didn't have to be only about meeting at Fitness First to have an exercise partner; maybe it could be something a little more personal that didn't just focus on the body, but the mind and spirit as well, while possibly building friendships along the way.

I wanted to let everyone know that I have created a meetup group, partly inspired being a part of the Balance program. It's called: "The Reston Active & Balanced Being Group" and can be viewed at http://www.meetup.com/TheRABB/. The main page will give you a little more insight as to what the group's focus is about (mainly making and maintaining connections with other fellow human beings). This is both a scary yet exciting adventure for me as I have spent 2008 meeting a lot of great people in the NoVa area through meetup groups. I'm hoping that will continue throughout this year, having more good times with good people.

REMEMBER: there is absolutely no requirement to join the meetup group! I just wanted to present it as a possible option for those who may feel somewhat isolated, or have a need to get out and be a little more active in their lives, aside from going to the gym. Personally, I'm a creature of habit (if it ain't broke, don't fix it!), so routine and monotony is commonplace for me, something I can count on. However, I know most people like variety, so why not add some fun activities to your agenda in addition to your personal training? Something to think about.

It's a new year, full of possibilities. I'm looking forward to what it will bring!
Happy Joy to you all!

Janet

Whole and Real Foods, Delivered

GRASS FED MEATS--A Healthier Alternative

Local Flavor is a farmers market that delivers, from Rappahannock County Farms direct to you.

Grass fed meats are leaner, and have
a more natural ratio of Omega 3 to Omega 6 fats (1:1). They are also free of pathogenic bacteria, so they can be served rare or medium rare without concern for foodborne illness.

A family in Baltimore started buying grassfed meats from a farmer and the wife lost 70 lbs, as a result! These meats are so nutrient dense, you will find smaller portions deeply satisfying.

On their website, farmbuyersclub.com, you can place orders for farm fresh foods, and find a drop site near you to pick them up.

For an extra fee, leave a cooler on your front porch and a check and they will drive direct to your front door! Better yet, host a drop in your neighborhood. A fun way to connect with others who are interested in eating healthy and buying local.

Contact Mark or Laurie for more information, email them through the website farmbuyersclub.com!

Making Holiday Recipes Healthier

Hey guys! Substitution is the key to making your holiday recipes healthier!

My pumpkin pie is made with almond meal pressed into a pie plate instead of a white flour crust, and I also substitute maple syrup (or you could use agave nectar) for the white sugar in the pumpkin filling.

See my South Beach Pumpkin Pie recipe on foodgeeks.com. The easiest way to get there is to go to my blog
www.hartkeonline.blogspot.com and look on the right column at the top. Click on:

My Recipes on Foodgeeks.com.
It will take you to all my healthy recipes!

Happy Holidays!

Healthy Side Dish Option

Broccoli Flowers Sauteed in Olive Oil

2 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced widthwise
1/2 red pepper chopped into medium size bits
1 TBL Olive Oil
2 handfuls broccoli flowers (if large cut in half through the flower and
stem)

I used an electric skillet, but you can do this saute on the stove, saute on med-low till broccoli is cooked through, about 10 minutes.
*This is great served with fish, beef or chicken.

Turkey Soup--Nourishing and Delicious!

Don't forget to save that turkey carcass and make some soup! Saved in individual serving containers, this can be a great one pot meal for taking to the office or on a night when you choose not to cook! I am having some for lunch, today, as a matter of fact!

Happy Holidays! Kimberly

Greetings from Alana, our Nutritionistl

Dear Balance Members,

Christmas is almost here but you would never know it by the weather! Today, Santa could have been in a pair beach shorts and a tank top it was so warm!!!

I have seen a few of you lately and I can’t believe my eyes… your results are already amazing, and I am so happy to see you all looking so tight and fit and firm. I should have joined the program myself! Yes, I am so impressed with all that I have seen in such a short amount of time.

And speaking of being impressed: Today I got hungry at lunch so I made a couple of great recipes that I want to share with all of you. Perhaps Kimberly can post them to the blog as well. First, I grilled a chicken breast and drizzled it with warm hazelnut vinaigrette. I passionately consumed it with a spinach salad and a couple of thyme and cheese crisps – and I added a bit of wild rice pilaf that I had leftover from a party I went to yesterday.

Putting together a healthy, well balanced (and decadent!) meal does not have to take a lot of time or effort at all. You can get great ideas from looking in fun cookbooks or browsing the internet. The key is to plan your meals around plenty of veggies, some protein, a little bit of healthy carbohydrates, and a good quality fat like olive oil, walnuts, olives, avocadoes, and real butter. I hope you like these recipes as much as I do.

We will all meet again in late February or early March depending on Dr. Ashry’s schedule. In the meantime, keep up the good work, and don’t let the holidays get you too stressed out.

Have a wonderful Christmas and a VERY HAPPY New Year!

Warm Regards,

Alana

Warm Hazelnut Vinaigrette:

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil, or walnut oil, or hazelnut oil

2 cloves finely minced fresh garlic

¼ cup coarsely chopped lightly roasted hazel nuts

1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Warm the oil over medium-low heat. Add garlic and hazelnuts, and gently cook for just a minute or until garlic is very fragrant and golden. Stir in the balsamic vinegar, sea salt, and pepper. Drizzle this over grilled chicken, shrimp, fish, or lean beef for a delicious dish! If you like, you can also drizzle it over baby spinach or steamed veggies, of brown or wild rice for that matter!!!

Thyme and Cheese Crisps

1 cup grated parmesan or Romano cheese

2 tsp fresh thyme leaves

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Mix cheese with thyme leaves. Spoon heaping teaspoons onto the baking sheet, spacing a couple of inches apart, and lightly pressing down with your fingers to flatten into circles about 2-inches in diameter. Bake about 6-8 minutes or until lightly browned and crisp. Slide the parchment paper off the cookie sheet. With a spatula, loosen the crisps and cool on wire racks. They will firm up as they cool down (just like us after exercising!!!!!!) Let them cool completely. Then store them in an airtight container, layered between parchment or waxed paper. These are fantastic on salads, and take the place of croutons! They are wonderful! Enjoy!!!!

Exercising In The Cold

The weather is changing, but we can't let that debilitate our livelihood! I found these great tips on staying warm from The Weather Channel finess section and thought I'd share ...


The biggest concern for exercising in the cold is hypothermia, or too much heat loss. When you exercise in a cold environment you must consider one primary factor: how much heat will your body lose during exercise?

Heat loss is controlled in two ways:
1. Insulation, consisting of body fat plus clothing.
2. Environmental factors, including temperature, wind and whether you're exercising in the air or in the water. Each of these factors plays a role in the body's ability to maintain a comfortable temperature during exercise.

Insulation
Although many people aspire to have a lean figure, people with a little more body fat are better insulated and will lose less heat. Clothing adds to the insulation barrier and is clearly the most important element in performance and comfort while exercising in the cold. One study showed that heat loss from the head alone was about 50 percent at the freezing mark, and by simply wearing a helmet, subjects were able to stay outside indefinitely.

Clothing is generally a good insulator because it has the ability to trap air, a poor conductor of heat. If the air trapped by the clothing cannot conduct the heat away from the body, temperature will be maintained. Unlike air, however, water is a rapid conductor of heat and even in the coldest of temperatures, people will sweat and risk significant heat loss. With this in mind, you want to choose clothing that can trap air but allow sweat to pass through, away from the body.

By wearing clothing in layers, you have the ability to change the amount of insulation that is needed while many new products can provide such a layered barrier, it is important to avoid heavy cotton sweats or tightly woven material that will absorb and retain water. Because these materials cannot provide a layer of dry air near the skin, they can increase the amount of heat your body loses as you exercise.

Keeping the hands and feet warm is a common concern when exercising in the cold. Lower temperatures cause blood to be shunted away from the hands and feet to the center of the body to keep the internal organs warm and protected. Superficial warming of the hands will return blood flow to prevent tissue damage. Blood flow will not return to the feet unless the temperature of the torso is normal or slightly higher (.5-1.0 degree Fahrenheit (F) above normal). So, to keep your feet warm you must also keep the rest of your body warm at all times.

Check with the weatherman
Always check the air temperature and wind chill factor before exercising in the cold. Data from the National Safety Council suggest little danger to individuals with properly clothed skin exposed at 20°F, even with a 30 mph wind. A danger does exist for individuals with exposed skin when the wind chill factor (combined effect of temperature and wind) falls below minus 20°F.

That can be achieved by any combination of temperatures below 20°F with a wind of 40 mph and temperatures below minus 20°F with no wind. If you are exercising near the danger zone for skin exposure, it also is advisable to warm the air being inhaled by wearing a scarf or mask over your nose and mouth to warm the air being inhaled.

Rules for exercising in the cold
1. Check the temperature and wind conditions before you go out and do not exercise if conditions are dangerous.
2. Keep your head, hands and feet warm.
3. Dress in layers that can provide a trapped layer of dry air near the skin (avoid cotton sweats and other similar materials).
4. Warm the air you are breathing if temperatures are below your comfort level (usually around 0°F).

A BALANCE LUNCH by Alana

The weekend is here, why not make a homemade soup for lunch! Double or triple the recipe and freeze in individual servings for taking in your lunchbox to work or for future quick lunches!

Black Bean and Chicken Soup

½ cup chopped carrots
½ cup chopped onions
1 cup fresh or frozen cut green beans
1-2 cups chicken broth (I use the organic – chemical free)
1 15-ounce can black eyed peas, drained and rinsed
2 boneless, skinless chicken thighs - cut into bite size pieces
Seasonings:
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Salsa
Garlic
Chives
Hot sauce
Etc…

Place all ingredients except chicken in a saucepan. Use 1 cup of broth if you want a thick soup and 2 cups for a slightly thinner soup. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes, covered, until veggies are tender. If any foam rises to the top, skim it off. At this point, you can puree the soup and add the chicken. Continue to cook until chicken is done, or you can add the chicken before pureeing the soup, then puree after the chicken is done. Or, leave the soup chunky.

Season the soup to taste with sea salt, freshly ground black pepper, salsa, garlic, and/or chives, etc. Serve with a fresh salad with an extra virgin olive oil dressing.

Stressed!

I don't know about you, but lately I've been living a high stress lifestyle. That doesn't even include the fact it's the holidays, either! My job works in 'feast or famine' modes, and it just so happens I'll be very busy December through February, at least that's what I'm told. All that stress turns into protein and carb cravings, and even when I satisfy them with the 'right' things, I can still wake up in the middle of the night hungry! Grrr!

Going to the gym three times a week for the past month has definitely helped. You can tell the difference between the novice and the seasoned trainers, but each seem to have their own style on what will work best. I'll be honest to say, I HATE THE GYM -- ANY GYM! I was never into the fitness club experience, no matter how thin I'll get. It helps to have the personal trainer as a distraction, though, the one-on-one time helps make all the other people in the room fade away.

It's unfortunate I continue to have negative experiences with the staff at the Reston office. I realize this program is new to everyone, so there's a learning curve here, but some things I think are just common courtesy. Like I don't think it polite to refer to me (or any Balance participant) as 'the diabetics' ... I really didn't care for that label, especially in front of other members walking in and out of the gym. That's personal, and I don't want my blood pressure monitored while I'm in the middle of the cardio equipment, either. Then there was this evening ... my Wednesday personal trainer is no longer working at this location, but no one notified me, no one replaced him with another trainer, and no one assisted me with my workout. I'm now coming down with a cold (I can't remember the last time I've been sick, it's been so long), didn't really feel like going this evening, and then to have that experience of being 'abandoned' -- in a full gym no less -- didn't make my day. Frankly, I don't really care to reschedule for next Wednesday, but I'm not giving up my commitment to the program.

It's really not a wonder my glucose levels are all over the place with everything I'm dealing with. I still don't have a support system established in my personal life, so dealing with things like this is really difficult. I'm sharing this with you all in case someone else may be so unfortunate to have a lot on their life plate as well and think they're alone in their experiences. Just to talk sometimes would be nice, so THANK YOU, BALANCE BLOG!

Over and out.

What to do with the rest of your turkey?

With leftovers from Thanksgiving, a creative way of making use of that leftover turkey is Turkey Stock.

The following link, provides a recipe on how to make the stock. This can be used in stews and soups. This is also a healthy alternative, because you can refridgerate the stock overnight and skim the fat off the next day.

http://www.recipezaar.com/Rescued-Turkey-Stock-24576

South Beach Pumpkin Pie

Kimberly has a wonderful recipe for Pumpkin Pie. With Thanksgiving just passing, and Christmas, Kwanzaa, and Hanukkah on the rise this recipe helps you stick with your diet while also providing taste.

The secret is replacing the crust with almond meal, pressed into a pie plate! This eliminates the white flour! Kimberly also replaced the white sugar with maple syrup a whole sugar that is lower on the glycemic index! A South Beach diet pumpkin pie!

Click here for recipe:

http://foodgeeks.com/recipes/recipe.phtml?recipe_id=20366

Thanksgiving Day

Juan, personal trainer at Fitness First of Reston working out Thanksgiving Day on the stair climber! We are thankful to Juan for his hard work with BALANCE participants!

This is a great machine for a good cardio workout or warmup!

BALANCE T SHIRTS NOW IN!

For those of you who have yet to get your official BALANCE trial T shirt. They will have your shirt at the front desk of Fitness First of Reston.

Here is Kimberly proudly wearing her new shirt this morning! On the treadmill, still trying to whittle her middle!

Wear it proudly!

Dr. Chalid Ashry Comes Back to the U.S.

GREAT NEWS!

Dr. Ashry is planning to return to the U.S. and Reston on December 8, 9, 10th, 2008. That is just a few weeks from now. If any of you would like an individual meeting with him, or if you want us to organize a group meeting, please email Dr. Ashry with what would most interest you. He will meet with you at the Reston gym.

Kimberly