Fitness Blog - January 2012

So my New Year's resolutions for 2012 were no alcohol and no gluten for 10 weeks. Now I don't drink too often (maybe 2-3 times a month) so cutting out the booze from my diet really wasn't that big of a deal. I was raised on breads and pasta though.. and I absolutely love a good sandwich so giving up gluten was a bit tougher to wrap my head around.

I read the book Wheat Belly over the holidays to help get me motivated (I will write more about this another time). It has been almost 3 weeks now and I can honestly say that I am about 98% gluten free! It was a little challenging at first, having to find alternatives for my fried egg sandwich in the morning, my turkey or tuna sandwiches for lunch, my favourite fettuccine alfredo, and of course my weekly Sunday cheat.. a greasy, deep dish pizza! But now that I'm a few weeks in, it has gotten a lot easier!!

For lunch, I'm trying to eat a lot more vegetables. I now have my turkey and tuna over a bed of salad or will make myself some chicken, rice & broccoli or mix some leftover meat and veggies up with some eggs and have another scramble. I realized that I was eating so many sandwiches because they were super easy and convenient. I've found that if my fridge is stocked full of fresh produce and if I have plenty of healthy options like lean meats, eggs and cheese on hand, it's super easy to put something together in a few minutes. I've also started carrying around some nuts, yogurt and fruit in my gym bag so I always have a snack with me if I need.

Dinner really hasn't been a problem because I almost always eat something off the barbecue, whether it's a steak, grilled chicken or pork tenderloin. We also try to have fish at least once a week and have a bunch of wild salmon filets in our freezer from last Summer that we're still trying to get through. I always have a mixed salad or some steamed veggies (no starches) to accompany my meat.

It's only been a few weeks so it's tough to tell how much of a difference removing gluten from my diet has made. I definitely feel better, I have more energy throughout the day and have been having far less gastrointestinal/digestive issues. I haven't felt bloated at all except for the time that I cheated and had some 2 for 1 pizza at a friends place the other weekend. My guts ached so bad the next day and I felt puffy, bloated and gross!

I'm going to give it the full 10 weeks and then reassess things from there. I'm only human and realistically know that I'll probably eat gluten containing foods again. I'm going to try to treat the gluten containing foods like cheat meals though and limit them to no more than once or twice a week.

Marlaena and I were fortunate enough to go fishing last summer off the coast of Vancouver Island to a place called Sunshine Bay Resort. It was a quaint little lodge in the middle of nowhere and the first time that I've ever been on a fishing trip. We managed to catch over a dozen salmon over the 2 days we were there and they all weighed 10lbs. or more! We had the salmon packed in ice until we got home and then had it all vacuum sealed. We ended up with a bunch of filets in our freezer so we've been trying out different salmon recipes every week or so.

This is a recipe we've actually tried a couple of times. Mar really enjoys it and I have to say it's probably one of my favourites as well. It's simple, easy to prepare and so tasty!

Grilled Salmon and Wild Rice

I used 1 large filet, it made approx. 4 portions. 

Marinade:

2 tablespoons of Dijon Mustard

3 tablespoons of Tamari Organic Soy Sauce (gluten free)

6 table spoons of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1/2 tablespoon of Minced Garlic

Grill the salmon for about 4-5 minutes on each side.

After the salmon is cooked, brush on the marinade and let sit for 10 minutes.

Wild Rice:

Add 1 teaspoon of olive oil to a pan and sauté 1 stock of celery, 1/2 an onion and a few diced mushrooms. Once soft, pour the veggies into a casserole dish that has a lid.

Then in the same pan, sauté 1 cup of wild rice in a tablespoon of olive oil. I used Ambrosia wild rice blend. It's red and black, sweet and wild!

Pour the rice into the casserole dish with the veggies and add 2 cups of low sodium chicken stock.

Lay a couple of sprigs of thyme on top, cover with a lid and bake at 375 for 1 hour.

Check it after an hour, turn the heat down to 350 and cook for maybe another 10 minutes or so.

Take it out, remove the thyme and fluff it with a fork.

It's served in the picture with some baked butternut squash and steamed green beans.