Add Some Flare to Your Eggs

Sometimes we can get into a meal rut. Today, I felt like changing up my normal boiled egg breakfast option. With just a couple extras added, I gave an otherwise boring egg some flare.

Breakfast today was delicious! And I think the fact that my two-year-old twins gobbled it up, pretty much proves it.

A recipe isn't really required. Just fry an egg, add some sliced tomatoes, avocado and a dash of dried dill. There you have it.

However, I will share my tip for cutting down on oil for frying an egg. Melt on medium heat a tiny amount of oil of your choice into a small frying pan -- just enough to barely cover the bottom. Crack the egg into the pan, then after it sets slightly after a few seconds, add about 1/4 cup of water to the pan. Cover with a lid, then let the egg cook for a few minutes to your liking.

This method cuts down on the amount of oil you need to use because the egg cooks in the water so lots of extra oil isn't necessary to prevent sticking. A bonus is that you don't have to worry about any burned edges to your egg that can happen with a traditional fry.

If you're looking for a change to your breakfast routine, give this a try!

Enjoy!

Workout: 500 Reps Total Body Circuit

Are you ready for a challenge?

This workout consists of 10 exercises that you do for 50 reps for each. Perform the warm-up which adds on 150 reps to the workout, then do each of the exercises as quickly as you can while maintaining proper form.

Since this is a circuit, try not to rest too much between exercises -- aim for no more than 30 seconds. Now, because this routine is a bit tough, you might have to take small breaks in order to complete all 50 reps of each move -- that's fine.

Clock how long it takes you to get through the workout and use that as your starting point. Each time you do this routine, try to get through it in less time.

Warm-up 
Jumping jacks
Jumping rope
Alternating lunges with arm extension

Workout
Front squats with overhead press
Push-ups with rotation
Tire flips
Stiff-legged deadlifts with hammer curls
Bentover rows
Overhead tricep extensions
Stability ball knee tucks
Ab circles
Side leg lifts
Russian twists

Are Rice Cakes a Healthy Snack?

Photo by Mary Thompson via Flickr

Rice cakes seem like a healthy food choice. They are low in calories, fat and they're made from rice. Seems like a great option, especially if you get the plain brown rice variety, right?

Wrong.

I'm not a fan of rice cakes. Rice cakes are a high glycemic index food.

During processing, the fiber that was once in the rice is stripped down. Fiber is what we need to keep our blood glucose levels stable when consuming carbohydrates. Many rice cake brands have absolutely zero fiber and other brands have a tiny amount. But that tiny amount usually comes with twice as many carbohydrates.

You may be thinking, "So. I'm not afraid of some extra carbs."

We have to be careful of our consumption of starchy carbohydrates while trying to lose weight. And these refined processed carbs are not what you want to eat. You would basically be eating sugar. And sugar makes blood glucose levels skyrocket.

When these levels are spiked, the body is more prone to store fat. Eating a rice cake is not like eating rice. If you eat rice, your blood glucose levels do not increase as sharply as they do when you eat a rice cake.

Additionally, rice cakes are not filling at all. You may intend to eat only one, but will probably end up eating several, just to feel full.

Let's not even talk about the flavored varieties of rice cakes: butter, caramel, chocolate, cheddar, etc. I'll just say this -- all of that added sugar and those artificial ingredients are not good for our health or weight loss.

If you're looking for a healthy snack, opt for high fiber foods such as sunflower seeds, almonds, walnuts, pecans, apples, pears, oranges or strawberries -- to randomly name a few.