Travelling

When faced with the thought of travelling, many people start to get a little freaked out because they think they are just going to ruin their diet.

Now, of course, it all depends on what stage of your diet you are on. Are you just eating clean to maintain your health or are you actually in a preparation stage for a competition? The former would not be such a big deal, the latter could, it all depends on how you set yourself up!

I spent the weekend at my father's house along with my brother and one sister. As I have mentioned, my dad has cancer so he (in our opinion) could use a little extra care right now, although at times he is fighting us!

My brother is visiting from Barcelona and staying with him for a month, I think he may just be driving him crazy too.

I knew that many good foods would be prepared, and I had to make sure I would stick to my diet. I wrote down how many of each meal I needed while I was gone, measured out each portion and made big zip lock bags full of my food, portioned into littler bags.

One bag, had several 4 ounce bags of cooked, cubed chicken breast. One had several bags of cooked rice, beans and potatoes, and another had bags of different cooked vegetables.

I bought along a carton of egg whites, low sugar ketchup, hot sauce and plenty of spring water.

I also had my pre-made oat/egg white waffles and my supplements and whey protein.

It is important to bring more than you need, you never know what you might feel like eating and it is safer to have a bit extra than to risk eating garbage right now.

You may wonder on occasion where I get my sense of humor? Could be my dad. Here he is after we all drove him nuts for several hours fussing.

I guess the medication they gave him was no match for his nagging children! I think this shows that I also inherited some of my positive outlook from him, I mean, he is joking and laughing! It's not going to help to cry, might as well have fun.

I was fine with my food, when I walked in my brother had a wonderful smelling curry on the stove, so I had to make some myself.

I asked what spices he used and put my vegetables into a pot, added those spices, cooked it until aromatic then added some chicken stock and rice, then chicken. I had a pretty good curry along with them.

I avoided the biscuits with butter, chocolate chip cookies, Swedish fish, special brownies, and all the rest of the goodies.

I know where the closest gym is, I have been there before and it isn't convenient, but that didn't stop me. It is a 13.46 mile drive each way and a $10.00 fee.

I slept on the love seat and then tried the floor. Neither was quite like my bed, but no matter, I had a good time. Kept my phone nearby and as soon as it was time, got up, drank my protein and off to the gym I went each morning.

By the time I got home (3 hours later), everyone was up, had eaten and cleaned up and we could spend time together.

Diet? No problem!

Curried Chicken and Cauliflower Soup

This recipe is from the January issue of Clean Eating magazine. I enjoyed it quite a bit! 

I added more curry than the recipe called for, I seem to like things spicier than the average person.

I am a sucker for coconut milk and will make just about any recipe with that as an ingredient. I have never purchased the full fat version, there is no need to, the lite is just fine. 

Even then, it does have a large number of calories but this uses just a small amount. Not wanting to open a can and then throw everything but a couple tablespoons away, I decided to get an ice cube tray and fill it up with coconut milk! Each cube is 1 tablespoon. I froze them then popped them out and filled up a zip lock bag. I was actually quite surprised at how much flavor just a small amount adds to a dish. I will try this trick with other soups, especially since I have a bag full of frozen coconut cubes!

This serves 6 (makes 8 cups)

Total time is 25 minutes, a real quick dish.

Ingredients

• 1/6 cup Coconut Milk, Light
• 12 oz Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breast
• 4 cups Cauliflower,raw
• 1 cup Red Bell Peppers
• 9 oz Potato
• 4 cups Chicken Broth-fat Free, Low Sodium
• 4 tsp Spicy Curry Powder
• 1/2 tsp Black Pepper
• 6 green onions, chopped
• 1/3 cup chopped cilantro
• Plain fat free Greek yogurt

Directions

In a 4 qt pot heat coconut milk over medium heat, do not let it boil. Add cubed chicken breast and curry powder. Cook for about 6 minutes until lightly golden. Add cauliflower, bell pepper, potato and broth, cook on medium high until it boils. Cover pot and reduce heat to medium low and simmer for 10 minutes.

When cauliflower and potatoes are tender, uncover & simmer for 1-3 minutes to thicken slightly. Season with black pepper,

Spoon into soup bowls, top with green onion and cilantro cilantro. Finish with 1/4 c nonfat plain Greek yogurt.

One serving is 1 1/2 cups soup and 1/4 cup yogurt

Calories: 186
Total Fat 4 grams
Saturated Fat 2 grams
Carbs 15 grams
Fiber 3.5 grams
Sugars 3 grams
Protein 24 grams
Sodium 131 mg
Cholesterol 33 mg

Slow Cooker Turkey Lasagna

I love lasagna. I rarely eat it though as it is not unusual for a serving to contain well over 1000 calories, not to mention all the saturated fat.

I saw a recipe on Facebook from Recipes for Gals in Figure and Bodybuilding, Jen posts all sorts of recipes that are simple and usually really low calorie. I decided to give this a try and I was really pleasantly surprised!

I will make a few changes and adjust a few things next time. First, I am not a slow cooker kinda gal! I actually got a beautiful, huge one for Christmas in 2009, and I just opened it today. So that means I have had it for 10 months and never even opened the box.  I need to use it a few more times to get used to it I think.

Some of the edges of my lasagna were extremely dark and crispy, I guess you might say "burned" but as long as I chucked out those pieces, the rest was fine. The recipe said to cook 4 to 5 hours on high, I set it for 4 1/2 and I guess 4 was sufficient! I would suggest that you just check it periodically.

Also, I think I might saute my onions and garlic first, then add the turkey. This way the onions can get a caramelized, sweet flavor. I also realize as I type this that I forgot the nutmeg...and as far as "cooking wine"- never cook with anything that you wouldn't drink!

I must caution you, this isn't going to satisfy anyone who loves lasagna.It does not have the silky, tender pasta or rich, meaty sauce with the melting cheese running throughout.  But, I love a lean body, and the thought of eating all those calories just puts me off, it would undo everytihng I work so hard for.

So, given my goals, and the fact that I need to make a choice and also like some variety in my life, I enjoyed this.

What did the family think? My husband David didn't say much, (his mother taught him that if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all), and he didn't finish it .

My son Cooper said it was OK, but then said "this is turkey isn't it?! Lasagna  needs beef!" and he ate almost all of it, but only because he was hungry.

Maybe the fact that I slightly burned it had something to do with this, I have never prided myself on "slow cooker cooking" because I don't consider that cooking at all, so maybe it was my lack of technique.  I mean I can whip up a souffle, a cassoulet, a tart, but this dumb as a doornail slow cooker recipe seemed to get the better of me.

I will make it again (for myself) though!

Here is the recipe as she gave it:

Makes 10 servings (10 average servings or 8 large ones)

Ingredients:
 
6 oz whole wheat lasagna noodles (basically enough for 2 layers)

12 oz 99% fat-free ground turkey (precooked on the stove top)

1/2 cup fat-free cottage cheese

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (could sub for fat-free, but I didn't have any one hand)

8 oz low-fat ricotta cheese

6 oz low-fat part skim mozzarella cheese

6 oz can tomato paste

29 oz tomato sauce

1 cup chopped white onion

2 minced garlic cloves

2 tbs dried parsley (divided)

Mrs. Dash to taste

1/4 cup red cooking wine

1/8 tsp ground nutmeg

Directions:

Saute turkey, onion, and garlic til browned and tender. Add tomato paste, sauce, 1 tbs parsley, and Mrs. Dash to meat mixture. Simmer for a few minutes on low. Remove from heat. Stir in cooking wine and set aside.

In another bowl mix all cheeses along with 1 tbs parsley and nutmeg.
Spoon one layer of turkey mixture into bottom of slow cooker. Add one layer of dry lasagna noodles (you'll have to break them to make them fit). Add layer of cheese and then turkey mixture. Repeat again with noodles, cheese, turkey. Top lasagna with a pinch of parsley, cheese (optional) and 1-2 more tbs of cooking wine.

Cook on low for 7-8 hours or on high for around 4-5.

Nutrition:
Calories: 266
Total Fat 7.4g
Cholesterol 36.7mg
Sodium 868.8mg
Total Carbohydrate 25.85g
Dietary Fiber 3.38g
Sugars 10.51g
Protein 23g

2 days out and looking good!

I took the two days off (Thursday and Friday) before my show.  I am standing in my kitchen in the morning and feeling pretty darn good about everything.


Weight is good (121), bodyfat is low (2.7%) and I look better than ever.

I am sure lots of folks think there is nothing to it, you just show up and wham, bam, thank you ma'am it's over, but no, that's not quite how it goes.


There is actually a lot to do to prepare ahead of time.  Let me start with how my diet changes today (Thursday).

Since Monday I have been on a modified diet, not a lot different than usual. I am a small person, I weigh 121 pounds right now and I don't need to make drastic changes, or rather I shouldn't as it could be disaster! Only small tweaks are needed at this point. First, I have been adding in more healthy fats. That means I am eating more flax or Udo's oil or peanut butter.

Since Sunday my diet has been this:

Meal #1  4:14 am 1/2 serving cream of rice, 3 ounces chicken breast
Meal #2  7:45 am 1 serving cream of rice, 4 ounces chicken breast
Meal #3  11:30 am 4 ounces brown rice, 4 ounces chicken breast, 1/2 cup asparagus, 1/2 cup mushrooms
Meal #4 3:00 pm 3 ounces brown rice, 4 ounces chicken breast, 1/2 cup asparagus, 1/2 cup mushrooms

Meal #5 6:30 pm 3 ounces brown rice, 5 ounces tilapia, 1 cup green beans

Meal # 6 8:45 pm 4 ounces chicken breast

Thursday it turned into this: 

Meal #1  5:30 am 1/2 serving cream of rice, 2 ounces chicken breast
Meal #2  8:30 am 1 serving cream of rice, 3 ounces chicken breast
Meal #3  11:30 am 4 ounces brown rice, 3 ounces chicken breast, 1/2 cup asparagus, 1/2 cup mushrooms
Meal #4 3:00 pm 3 ounces brown rice, 3 ounces chicken breast, 1/2 cup asparagus, 1/2 cup mushrooms

Meal #5 5:30 pm 4 ounces brown rice, 3 ounces tilapia, 1 cup green beans

Meal # 6 8:45 pm 3 ounces chicken breast

What did I do? Cut protein by ONE OUNCE at each meal...and added ONE OUNCE starch at two meals.


You are thinking what the heck will that do? A lot, believe me!

Because I have carb cycled, my muscles needed to get more glycogen into them, and you do that with carbs. By cutting protein a bit, the glycogen is shuttled right into those depleted muscles, making them hold on to it and look full.

It is a fine line we walk, a little too much and you "spill over" and look flabby, a little short and you look like you have been on a hard diet, way too long.

The final change to the diet is Friday night, when meal # 5 will be:


3 ounces lean steak (really rare, only cause I like it that way)
1 whole plain baked potato (lemon and pepper added)

1 cup asparagus

1 slice of cheesecake

Here is the cake, I made it this morning at 6:00 am! My son woke to the smell of freshly baking lemony cheesecake.

I had to go grocery shopping and spent way too much, to make sure anything that I could possibly want was in the house when I got home Saturday night.

I was at Cosentino's picking up some PB2 for Deirdre (she will be at the Max Muscle booth Saturday, look for the hottie clutching two containers of PB2).

Frank wanted to chat, he works there and spent many years competing himself. He wanted to know what I take to get so lean. I told him L-Carnitine, CLA, Amino Acid Complex 4 times a day, BCAA's fish oil, cayenne and green tea. Not much.

He was happy, nothing bad, and the right stuff. He wanted to show me a bread I should be eating. I asked him about carrying Walden Farms calorie free peanut butter spread and he said he would check it out for me. I do really like the people there, they are more than willing to help me with any request I might have. We chatted for about a half hour, then he went off to work and I continued with my to-do list.

I have to stay in a hotel Friday night and it is not a good idea to rely on anyone else but yourself for food right now, they may have all sorts of sodium and garbage in it, it's too close to take a chance.

I will bring my steak dinner (cooked) and more food for the night and next day. Cooked chicken, steak, asparagus, rice and a small amount of sweet potato. I will have more cheesecake for breakfast too.


I cooked the asparagus and chicken Thursday, Friday I will cook the steak and sweet potatoes and baked potato.

I have requested a microwave and refrigerator in my room, they often run out, and if so, I know where the staff kitchen is! 

The reason for the steak and cheesecake is that my body will be totally primed and receptive to anything I put into it, I should look hard, full and healthy Saturday, not thin, skinny and tired. By eating these foods I will look the way I need to.

I had to pack my things, bring dark sheets so I don't get tanning solution on the nice hotel sheets...I will be spray tanned there in a room Friday night, it is very messy stuff.

I had a manicure and a pedicure. It was a slow day I guess, almost surreal. Do you remember when Dorothy and her friends got to the the castle of the Wizard of Oz? They all had to go the the salon and be "groomed" and cleaned first before meeting the wizard. I felt like I was there with them! I  was lounging in a huge reclining massage chair, one woman was working on my pedicure, one on the manicure on my left hand and a third on my right hand! The only part that made me realize I wasn't in Oz was the Bee-Gees on KBAY in the background......

My nails may be short, but they are neat and clean and nicely polished. I don't like the fake nails, they are a driving hazard! It is extremely difficult to drive down the freeway holding my can of champagne in one hand while trying to pry off the fake nails with the other!

I had to shave my entire body, and double check to make sure there are no stragglers. I used to get a body wax and besides being very painful and expensive, I found that my skin was just way too red and irritated by it.

I am not obsessed, I don't worry about shaving my back. I know men who need to, no women that I am aware of and if you are a woman that needs to shave your back, all I can say is, I am so very sorry about that!

Friday is time for a hair cut, Natalia is fantastic, she is at Atilier at Aveda in Santana Row. She will cut my hair and blow it out, so I don't have much to do the next day.

Pack up all my food and water in a cooler and off I go. I will check into the hotel, pull the bedding off the bed, put on my own blue sheets then unpack everything. When it is my appointment time, I will wander the halls looking for the Jan Tana room and then strip naked and get my spray tan, I will either have Kevin or Christina, they both do a great job.


Then it's back to my room where I will be sequestered all night. I have books and magazines, I don't enjoy TV and it's not like I can pop down and meet friends for a drink.


7:00 pm and water is cut off. Meaning, I can not longer suck down liters of it, I can only sip a tiny bit if thirsty. I will try not to drink much. The next day, I will do my best to make 12 ounces last all day. That's not much when you are used to drinking three liters.  This is really important as fluids make you look smooth, you cannot see muscle definition. I want no part of smooth on Saturday, I want hard, ripped, definition showing everywhere.

Up early for feeding time, then I will put on way too much make-up, it is stage make-up and you need to have a lot on to be seen under the harsh lights.

I made the boys Costolette di Maiale ai due Vini (Pork chops braised with marsala and red wine) with some new potatoes and salad. They always get a little antsy about now, knowing that I will be back and ready to eat for a couple weeks before going back to my routine.

What did I eat? Buffalo chicken....ground chicken with white vinegar and cayenne pepper. Not bad, not bad at all!

Good Eats Post Competition

Yes these are small suckling pigs in an oven. Did I tell you I was craving some good food?

David took this picture last time we were at Chez Panisse following my last competition, it was July 14, on Bastille Day.  I love this restaurant, real food, prepared with care, and always something intriguing on the menu, like the little piggies above!

I always have a list of things I want to indulge in after my competition, and the funny thing is that often I will only eat half of what's on the list.
What I am craving and will have in my bag backstage:

Two bananas. They are high in sugar and carbs, I haven't had a banana, or much fruit to speak of since August!

Doritos. I eat them only on Christmas morning and the night of a competition- go figure (no pun intended).

Dark chocolate covered caramels with salt on top. From Peet's Coffee... wicked I tell you!
Peanut M and M's.
Snickers bar.

Peanut Butter and rice cakes.
Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwich.

Sparkling wine.
My homemade fig pop tarts.

Then I will get in my car, and drive home where David will have REAL Champagne for me and a cheeseburger. Then some red wine and a long, hot, steamy shower.
We will laugh and have too much wine and go to bed happy and tired.

 
I will sleep in, probably until 6:00 am and get up and have a big cup of hot, black coffee and a piece of my fig pop tart along with a big spoonful of peanut butter, or two.

When David wakes he will make "David's Famous Ramos Fizz" and I will make eggs Benedict with fried potatoes.

Lunch I am not so sure yet, Cooper has a lacrosse game at 2:30 so that means it will be something at home. I would really like a  Nicoise salad drizzled with olive oil, whole eggs on it and anchovies. I hope my garden still has tomatoes. And a nice crusty pieces of bread to soak up the juices.

I am sure I will see my friends and neighbors, Mark and Virginia for even more sparkling wine, they usually stop by after a competition. If not, we will just walk over to their house!

I would also like a tuna fish sandwhich  on sliced sourdough with sweet pickle relish and lots of romaine lettuce. Odd, but that sounds good right now.

Dinner will be a juicy skirt steak, aioli, steamed new potatoes and an artichoke, cooked at home, along with some red wine.
 

The where do we go from there?

We are craving lobster rolls and the most fantastic onion rings from the Old Port Lobster Shack in Redwood City, California.  Cooper may try their fish and chips this time, I might have some lobster bisque before my lobster roll.

I have been dying to go to The Counter for a cheeseburger.  I went there and walked inside and LOOKED once, but I couldn't eat at the time. Cooper went with his friends and said it was one of the best burgers he has ever had. I am a cheeseburger freak!

I would like to have a salad Lyonnaise  with french fries at the Left Bank in Santana Row, David will have the steak tartare.

I think some al pastor tacos in downtown San Jose sound good, there are so many great taqueria's I am not sure where I will go.

I plan to make a torta cubana, one of my favorite sandwiches, but it is terribly fattening and calorie laden so I rarely make it. It has chorizo, ham, melted cheese, avocado, tomatoes, onions, jalapenos, and mayonnaise, all on a grilled roll.

I am looking forward to a bowl of pasta with Parmesan cheese. I am not sure if I will make a ragu or a broccoli rabe with anchovies and garlic, both might be in order!

That gets us to Saturday when David, Cooper and I will make the pilgrimage to the Ferry Plaza Market in San Francisco. We will go to Mijita's and have fish taco's and red wine for breakfast.

We will shop at the huge farmers market and buy clams and mussels and some fish from Hog Island Oyster Company and I will make bouillabaisse with rouille for dinner.

 
Then we have reservations for lunch at Zuni Cafe in San Francisco, their food is fabulous. Here I am enjoying dessert there after my last competition in July.

Fig Pop Tarts

I am really thinking about food, and I get to eat whatever I want in a week. This is really a big part of the fun, you never know how much you appreciate the "little things" till you cannot have them.

Many people may think I am a freak, 7 days from a competition and I am standing in the kitchen making a giant homemade pop tart! 

It really isn't a pop tart, it is called a fig-berry pastry tart.

The dough is butter, cream cheese, sugar, salt and flour.I made it the weekend prior and put it in the freezer.

Inside is a mess of figs from my tree, blueberries, orange juice, and brown sugar.

Here it is before it was cooked down so it could be spread on the bottom layer of the dough.

Then I rolled out another layer, pricked it all over and laid it on top and sealed the edges to make the giant pop tart!

A powdered sugar, butter, lemon juice glaze went on top, and now it is cooling. Then it will be cut into small square and sealed in an airtight container, waiting for ME! I promised Maegan Swain that she could try some too.

I have just one tiny concern, and that is the fact that it smells heavenly, and I just had three teenage boys and my husband file past on their way to a Sharks game, wondering when it will be done.

I will be in bed asleep when they get home, I said they could try it, but please remember it is a post competition treat for me. They would never intentionally eat it all, but when something is so good you cannot help yourself.....

I have a small can of Sofia sparkling wine in the fridge, it comes with a sippy straw. My girlfriend and I sometimes drink them and chat as we have pedicures. I plan to crack that little can open right after my competition, and drink it and eat a piece of this tart...

Week Prior to Competition Diet

The final week prior to a competition, you make sure that you eliminate all the extra sodium so you don't retain water.

That means that I can no longer have protein shakes, they are loaded with sodium. I cannot eat egg whites either, they have lots of sodium too.

So when I get up at 4:00 am, I usually have a thick, delicious chocolate meal replacement shake, but no more for the next week. 

And I need to eat protein for breakfast and right before bed, and I usually have microwaved egg whites, plain right now, but when I am not within a month of a competition I will put on salsa, ketchup, hot sauce, all sorts of things. 

What's a girl to do?

Ground chicken breast.

Yup,  I will get up at 4:00 am and start eating chicken. I will also need a carb so I will have cream of rice. I may mix them together too, like some homemade baby food.

And when I get home from training, meal 2 will be ground chicken breast, and cream of rice again.

Right before bed? Ground chicken breast.

It is very important to read labels when you buy your food, including chicken.  Many companies are notorious for adding a sodium solution to "plump" up their meats, so they weigh more and they are charging you for salt water. 

You may think you are doing everything right, but in reality, you may be buying garbage just because it may be less expensive, and it is pumped full of a 14% solution of sodium.....and you will swell like a balloon. 

Read the labels. A 4 ounce serving of chicken breast should not have more than 70 to 75 mg of sodium in it, that is the naturally occurring amount. They are also required to state on the package if there is a sodium solution used, it could actually be a heath concern for some individuals. The label is very, very tiny though.

If you buy your meat at a butcher counter, they have all the data in the back, they can tell you, make them check. 

Here I have my ground chicken breast all cooked and weighed out. I have packages ranging from 2 ounces to 4 ounces each. My week will vary, I will have higher protein and lower carbs through Wednesday, then I raise the carbs and lower the protein, to shuttle all the carbs into the muscles. I am not so keen on the meals where I get only 2 ounces of protein, it's like a garnish to tell you the truth!

Friday night will be a big meal, steak, baked potato, cheesecake so I look full and healthy the next day.  I will surely write about that meal, I get to make my own (famous) cheesecake, and enjoy it Friday night and Saturday morning for breakfast too.

Butternut Squash and Turkey Soup

This soup was very nice, creamy (yet no cream), spicy and very healthy.

It is from the Precision Nutrition Cookbook by Dr. John Berardi.

I love soup. I usually tend to make the broth based soups because I just cannot eat the cream, so having one with a creamy texture is great!

This is one I would make again, and it was easy to do.  This serves 8 ( a big guy gets double)


Soup Base:

1 Tbsp coconut oil
5 cups butternut squash (skin removed, roughly chopped)
1 cup roughly chopped onion
1 Tbsp grated or minced fresh ginger
1 Tbsp minced fresh garlic
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp nutmeg
5 cups vegetable or chicken broth
1 cup water

Soup Garnish:

1 lb, 10 ounces ground turkey
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp cumin

Olive Oil cooking spray

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

 

Soup base:

Preheat large pot on medium high heat, add coconut oil and squash, saute until lightly browned. Add onion, ginger, garlic, cinnamon, nutmeg and 2 Tbsp of broth; saute for 2 minutes more, stirring constantly. Add remaining vegetable broth and water and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer until squash is soft (approximately 30 minutes). Prepare garnish while soup base is cooking. Let soup cool a few minutes. Puree in blender or food processor until smooth and pour back into pot.

Soup Garnish:

Season turkey with salt, pepper and cumin. Preheat large non-stick frying pan on medium heat and lightly coat with spray. Saute turkey until lightly browned and completely cooked, breaking up meat into small crumbles. Add cooked turkey and cilantro to soup base. Reheat and serve immediately or portion soup into storage containers. To maintain tenderness of meat, avoid bring soup to a boil after meat has been added.

I make one batch, and do not add the garnish. I divide the base into 8 servings (7 containers and 1 small pot), and then mike the turkey and cilantro together, and divide that equally between the 8 containers. I have one bowl for dinner and other 7 go in the freezer for later.

Calories 219.8

fat 9.8 grams

carbs 14.3 grams

sugar 2.6 grams

protein 18.8 grams

Feeling Blue and Vinegar Chicken

I woke up feeling blue today, and it has lingered for quite some time. I am a really upbeat person, I don't get down very easily.

It's the diet.

It's Sunday and I  have 20 days to go. 20 days is not a long time, it can whiz by so fast. But when you are on a super strict diet, it can go oh so slowly.

I actually had tears well up in my eyes this morning as I was on the treadmill, and it was not the treadmill making me cry. It was the feeling of despair that hits you sometimes, and those of you who compete will know exactly what I am talking about.

I spent three hours at the gym, I worked shoulders, then bootcamp with "R" and I did my cardio for a half hour, I didn't feel like going back a second time today.

I am ready to live a normal life, ready to relax a bit.

I come home famished, all I had was my meal replacement drink at 5:15, and it was now 9:30. Egg whites, and then a bowl of steel cut oats. So hungry. Almost decided to eat turkey meatballs and rice, that may make me feel normal again.

David offers some tastes of his food, forgetting that I cannot try it. He apologizes, not intending to make things worse for me.

I start making vinegar chicken for David and Cooper's dinner. It is a fabulous dish, that if I wasn't so close to competition time I could eat, but not today. I cook and try not to pay attention to the smells, Coop walks in and says it smells great.

La Volaille Au Vinagre De Vin Bistro D'A Cote

Saute 6 chicken legs, 6 chicken thighs (or a cut up whole chicken) that has been generously salted and peppered  in 3 tablespoons olive oil and 2 tablespoons butter till golden. Remove from skillet, drain fat, add chicken back into the skillet. Slowly add 1 1/2 cups red wine vinegar, cook about 10 minutes till reduced by half, turning chicken occasionally.

Add 1 cup chicken stock, 1 large can chopped tomatoes, salt and pepper, cover and simmer 20 minutes. Remove chicken, then reduce sauce for 10 minutes. Add the chicken back into the skillet, it's best if you refrigerate it a while, even overnight, it makes the flavors better. Then reheat, and add 4 tablespoons butter.

It is served with potatoes au gratin made with creme fraiche and Gruyere cheese.

I then made them a fig crostada (rustic tart) for dessert.
 
There are always leftovers from the chicken so what do I do? I think they may even like this better: The sauce is thin, and I take all the remaining chicken from the bones, mix it with the remaining sauce and serve over pasta the next day.

Me? I will have red snapper, asparagus and rice.

I think this scenario repeated day after day would get anyone down eventually.
David and Cooper leave for a few hours to a couple lacrosse games, I have brought work home so my mind is occupied and I am not feeling so down, I am concentrating too much.

I decide to make pastry tart for some homemade fig "pop tarts"...I will freeze the dough and cook them later, just before I go to my competition, they are best room temperature says the  recipe, they look stunning and I cannot wait to try them!

The dough is flour, sugar, salt, butter and cream cheese. Filled with a homemade fig jam mixture then baked and glazed, they should be fabulous with a steaming hot cup coffee... or champagne.

I don't lick my fingers as I prepare the dough, but I really want to, no one is watching, I can easily do it and no one would know. But I would, and if I didn't look my best when I stepped on stage, I would be really angry at myself in 20 days.

I eat my next meal, a can of tuna, 4 ounces brown rice and some mushrooms. I am increasing carbs because I have started putting out ketones, I monitor my urine to see if I have been cutting back too much and I have, so it's more starches for a while.

I still have a couple pounds to lose, so it's tough, I have to increase carbs yet lose weight, it means more cardio.

Chorizo Turkey Cutlets

We returned home from a lacrosse game, about an hour and a half later than I thought we would. Of all people, I didn't bring food with me! The game was a one hour indoor game, and was smack dab in between meals.

Shaydon Santos, the program director asked Cooper to stay a bit longer, Telemundo was filming and wanted some of the Cali*Lax players in the footage.  

 
By the time I got home, I was hungry and missed a meal. Missing a meal is a real problem when you are prepping for a competition, it may even be worse than eating too much!

I had a rice cake and some peanut butter to hold me a bit, then started making dinner.

David was making cooper "a little snack". He had a chorizo quesadilla, dripping in melted cheese. It made me really, really hungry for chorizo. I knew the cheese was out of the question though.

Dinner was turkey cutlets, they are pre sliced, thin rounds of turkey breast that cooks very quickly. I decided to make turkey cutlet chorizo!
 

I got a large non-stick skillet, sprayed it with olive oil cooking spray, then placed the turkey cutlets in the pan. I generously sprinkled them with chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder (be sure to use the powders and not the salts), pepper and salt.

Once they browned, I turned them over and sprinkled the same thing on the other side then poured in a generous amount of red wine vinegar, which sizzled and began to cook off quickly. One more turn, a bit more vinegar and it was done.

I served it with a side of plain brown rice, (2 ounces), I am now eating to lose fat so starches are restricted, steamed cauliflower and a mixture I had made the previous day of roasted cubed eggplant and sauteed red bell peppers, poblano peppers, and pimiento de padron peppers.

It satisfied my chorizo craving, and I now have a new tasty meal in my repertoire.

13.5 Meals

  

I frequently talk about how important it is to set yourself up to be successful, you just cannot leave things to chance.  I am working a lot right now, August is a very busy time for my entire family, David is an elementary school principal, I work in on-campus housing at a university and my son, Cooper starts back at school.
Because I am working weekends too, I need to do a bit more prep ahead of time, more than I usually might.

Above you see 6.75 pounds of cooked chicken breast, that is 108 ounces. I got home from work and had to start, there was no time to do this on the weekend as usual. I flavored two cookies sheets full of boneless, skinless chicken breast with smokey paprika, red pepper flakes and black pepper and baked them until just cooked through.

I then started cubing...and cubing.

I then got out all my little zip lock baggies and started weighing them out, 4 ounces in each bag, and into the pile the full bags went. 27 of them. I then put the small bags into bigger freezer bags and into the freezer it all went.

I eat 6 times a day, two of those meals (meals #3 and 4) are cubed chicken, vegetable and starch. The chicken here will make 13.5 meals, so 6.75 pounds (cooked weight mind you) will only feed me 2 of my 6 daily meals, for just under 2 weeks.

It takes a lot of food to create a magnificent body. And if I didn't prepare ahead, who knows what I might end up eating?