Easy Vitamin D

Make sure you’re getting enough vitamin D. Sit in the sun for a few minutes. The sun will boost your mood and get you motivated to keep your goals.

Vitamin D is the sunshine vitamin; it is something we get through sunlight rather than from food. Actually, some foods do contain Vitamin D but it is nowhere near enough to replace what we get from the sun. The recommended daily allowance is about 600IU, whereas we can produce more than 10.000IU in about 30 minutes of full sun exposure, which is over 15 times more than the government recommends for us to take.

What does Vitamin D do for diseases?

Reduce chances of heart disease

Dramatically reduce chances of cancer

Extremely helpful against osteoporosis

Very good for the immune system

Helps fight depression

Reduces acne

Helps reduce chances of getting Alzheimer’s

May also help with weight loss

Help prevent pathological muscle weakness

Combat type II diabetes and the metabolic syndrome

Filet Mignon with Mushroom Sauce

Ingredients:

Fresh shiitake mushrooms stems removed  

Vegetable cooking spray

Cracked pepper

1 1/2 Dry red wine

2 ts Cornstarch

Fresh thyme sprigs

1 ts Dried thyme

4 4-oz filet mignon steaks about 1 inch thick  

1/3 shallot finely chopped

1 tb Margarine

Tb Low-sodium soy sauce

1 10.5-oz can beef consommé

Directions: 

Melt 1-1/2 t margarine in a nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium heat. Add shallot and mushrooms; sauté 4 minutes. Add 1 c wine and 3/4 c consommé; cook 5 minutes, stirring frequently. 

Remove mushrooms, and place in a bowl. Increase heat to high; cook wine mixture 5 minutes or until reduced to 1/2 c. Add to mushrooms in bowl; set aside.

Wipe skillet with a paper towel. Sprinkle pepper over steaks. Melt remaining margarine in skillet coated with cooking spray over medium heat. Add steaks; cook 3 minutes on each side or until browned. Reduce heat to medium-low; cook 1-1/2 minutes on each side or until done. Place on a platter; keep warm.

 Combine soy sauce and cornstarch; stir well. Add remaining wine and consommé to skillet; scrape skillet with a wooden spoon to loosen browned bits. Bring to a boil; cook 1 minute. Add mushroom mixture, cornstarch mixture, and dried thyme; bring to a boil, and cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Serve with steaks. Garnish with fresh thyme.

Corned Beef and Cabbage

St. Patrick's Day Irish Recipes

Ingredients

5 pounds corned beef

5 garlic cloves, lightly smashed

10 peppercorns

4 sprigs fresh thyme

2 bay leaves

32 ounces stout (recommended: Guinness) 2 large cans

1 cup beef broth or stock

Water, for simmering

4 yellow onions, cut into wedges, plus 1 medium yellow or sweet onion, sliced

2 parsnips, peeled and cut into large chunks

3 carrots, peeled and cut into large chunks

6 medium red potatoes, scrubbed

1 medium head green cabbage, cut into quarters, core removed

4 tablespoons butter

Directions

Open both Guinness cans, pour one into appropriate glass and take a sip.

Rinse the corned beef and put it into a large Dutch Oven or heavy soup pot. Take another sip from poured Guinness. Add the garlic, peppercorns, thyme and bay leaves to the pot. Stir in one 16 oz. can stout (Guinness), stock and enough water to cover the beef by 2 inches. Drink from glass of Guinness. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then reduce the heat to a gentle simmer and cook for 4 hours, covered, stirring occasionally. Finish your beer.

After 4 hours, add the onion wedges, parsnips, and carrots, and cook for a 1/2 hour. Add the potatoes and the cabbage wedges and cook until the cabbage is tender, but not limp, about 20 minutes. Remove the cabbage to a plate and allow the corned beef and other vegetables to continue cooking until the meat is tender.

In a separate large sauté pan, heat 4 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Add the sliced onion, and a pinch of salt and sauté until tender and beginning to brown, about 8 to 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, slice the cabbage thinly, gently pressing with a clean cloth to remove excess water. Add the cabbage to the onion mixture and toss to coat well with the butter. Cook over medium heat until the cabbage begins to brown.

Remove the meat and slice thin. Serve at the table with all the vegetables piled onto a serving tray and the sliced meat onto another tray with some of the broth poured over the meat.

You may want to have extra Guinness on hand to serve with your lovely Irish dish!

Total-Body Resistance-Cardio For Fast Fat-Loss: One-Arm Kettlebell Swing Step-Ups

By Nick Nilsson

Cardio training is important, especially if you want to lose fat as fast as possible and develop your cardiovascular capacity. It also can be quite boring and ineffective if yo uuse exercises that allow you to plug away for long periods of time without any focus, attention or intensity.

That's where THIS resistance-based cardio exercise comes in...it's a kettlebell (or dumbell) swing done at the same time you're stepping up and down on a bench, Step platform or stairs. It works ALL the major muscle groups in your ENTIRE body in one combination movement.

It sounds really complicated and complex...do a one-arm kettlebell swing combined with a step-up. But once you get the hang of it, it's actually pretty easy and pretty natural to do.

Bench Step-Ups themselves are a great low-equipment way to get some cardio training done. This essentially doubles the effectiveness of that cardio by including an upper body and core component to the exercise, dramatically increasing calories burned and the metabolic effect of the exercise.

Really, you're hitting your whole body in one shot.

I recommend doing this as interval training. I like to do 30 seconds work to 30 seconds rest for a total of 15 minutes. To do this one, you'll need some Step risers or a low bench or stairs and a kettlebell.

Stand in front of your Step platform with the kb in your right hand. Grip on the kb as far over to the right hand side of the handle as you can (I actually leave my pinky off the grip completely to make the switch at the top easier). This will facilitate the switching of hands at the top of the swing.

Take a short backswing with the kb then step up onto the bench at the same time as you swing the kb up in front of you (right or left leg - doesn't matter, though it's good to alternate which one you step up with on each interval you do).

At the top of the swing, when you're standing on the Step, switch hands and let it swing down with your left hand as you step back down at the same time. Take a short back swing then step up again, swinging the kb up again.

Repeat this sequence of switching hands and stepping up and down for 30 seconds.

That's it!

Like I said, it sounds complicated but you once get going it's not so bad. And it's TOUGH, really hitting every major muscle group in your body while you're doing cardiovascular training.

If you've only got dumbells, I suggest doing it with two dumbells and not switching hands at the top - it's tougher to switch with db's and you don't want to drop one on yourself.

It works just as well with 2 dumbells, though you won't get the same degree of core involvement as you do swinging a single kb back and forth. Grab two dumbells - I've got two 20-lb dumbells here. Take a short backswing. Now step onto the platform and start swinging them up in front of you.Swing them up til your arms are horizontal then step back down, bringing the dumbells back down and taking another backswing.

Again, when you're doing these for intervals, alternate which leg you lead with on each interval, e.g. step first with your left on one interval then on the next interval step first with your right. This will help keep things even.

This is GREAT cardio training...very little equipment needed and it'll work you better then the vast majority of the cardio machines out there.

RECOMMENDED: to best understand how to perform and get the most out of this technique, I HIGHLY recommend checking out the pictures and video of it in action...

And if fast fat loss is your goal, I would definitely recommend checking out my program "Metabolic Surge - Rapid Fat Loss". It's a targeted "done-for-you" 36-day rapid fat loss program that helps you KEEP and even BUILD muscle at the same time, reshaping your body quickly and efficiently.

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Nick Nilsson has a degree in Physical Education and Psychology and has been innovating new training techniques for more than 20 years. Nick is the author of a number of bodybuilding books including "Muscle Explosion! 28 Days To Maximum Mass", "Metabolic Surge - Rapid Fat Loss," "The Best Exercises You've Never Heard Of," "Gluteus to the Maximus - Build a Bigger Butt NOW!" and "The Best Abdominal Exercises You've Never Heard Of", all designed to maximize the results you get for the hard work you put into your training.

Be sure to grab your FREE copy of Nick's 30-day "DirtyLittle Secret Program for Building Muscle and Burning Fat FAST"  

Roasted Flounder With Shrimp Stuffing

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 tsp Salt

1/4 cup Pine nuts

3 Scallions; finely chopped

1 Garlic clove; finely chopped

1/2 lb Cleaned and shelled shrimp

1/2 tsp Freshly-ground black pepper

1/2 tsp Paprika

1/4 c Unsalted butter; room temp

2 Whole Flounder

Salt; to taste

1/2 c Dry bread crumbs

3 Tbsp Chopped fresh sage

2 Fresh jalapeno peppers;

1 Fresh Lemon squeezed no seeds

Black Pepper; freshly ground

Olive Oil

DIRECTIONS:

Well in advance of cooking the fish, prepare the stuffing. Combine the sage, softened butter, lemon juice, spice and seasonings, bread crumbs, pine nuts, jalapenos, garlic and coriander in the bowl of a food processor, pulsing to combine well. Remove and place in a bowl. Keep refrigerated until ready to use.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Season the flounder with salt and pepper and rub the trout with olive oil. Divide the stuffing between the 4 fish evenly and spread an even layer inside the cavity of the fish. Divide the shrimp in the same way and add the shrimp in a layer in top of the herb butter. Close the fish to seal in the stuffing. Lay the fish on an oiled rack and set in a roasting pan. Place the fish in the oven and roast for 12 minutes on each side. Remove and serve immediately.

A Chilled Sauvignon Blanc compliments this dish beautifully.

I also served a chopped spinach side dish which was easy to make... That will soon be in the Smashing Side Dishes

Grilled Spicy Lime Shrimp

INGREDIENTS:

3 Tbsp. Cajun seasoning (such as Emeril's Essence®)

2 limes, juiced

2 Tbsp .Olive Oil  ( flavored oil such as citrus or jalapeño  gives it an extra kick )

1 Tbsp. Garlic, fresh minced

1 pinch Sea Salt

1 pound peeled and deveined large shrimp

Wooden skewers (soak in water while shrimp marinates)

DIRECTIONS:

Mix together the Cajun seasoning, lime juice, and olive oil and garlic in a re-sealable plastic bag. Add the shrimp, coat with the marinade, squeeze out excess air, and seal the bag. Marinate in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.

Preheat an outdoor grill for medium heat, and lightly oil the grate.

 Pour shrimp into large mixing bowl.  Then spear shrimp tightly on wooden skewer and sprinkle salt lightly over shrimp.

Cook the shrimp on the preheated grill until they are bright pink on the outside and the meat is no longer transparent in the center, about 2 minutes per side.

Serve with a rice dish or grilled veggies…yum

Shed Belly Fat with Fish

Add Fish to your diet at least twice a week! The acids in the good fats will help you shed belly fat. Make sure it's NOT fried.