Fresh Avocado Tomato Salad

With Spring here and it feeling like Summer in California, the desire for fresh food comes forth. Raw, fresh food but certainly not lacking flavor. So it was, a Saturday night, hanging with my brother and his girlfriend, Sophie. Sophie is an excellent cook and has a lot of experience doing so. She was going to make us tacos–perfectly cooked steak for everyone and wild-caught fish for me. I was all in. Growing up in California, tacos become your soul food. Along with tacos, come the necessity of the avocado in one’s life. Rich with delicious healthy fat and the creaminess to save any dish, I was ready to be her sous chef and make the side dish–fresh Avocado & Tomato salad.

May012016

The New Protein Superfood: #FeelAmazingEveryDay (Giveaway)

Ladies and gentlemen, we would like to present to you a product that does everything in one perfect scoop. You get your 7 alkalizing greens (wheat grass, barley grass, alfalfa, spirulina, chlorella, broccoli, and spinach), your plant-based protein, and a healthy serving of your fruits and vegetables. It seems like a lot. And it is! But we aren’t pulling your leg. Amazing Grass dug deep and produced this great product for the public. It’s your daily nutrition all-in-one package. At Hungry and Fit, we try new products all the time. Some are hits and most are misses. I was a little nervous about this one. All this stuff in just one scoop? Won’t it be gross? Spoiler alert: it’s not!

Apr212016

A True Lifestyle Supplement: ON Amino Energy

The supplement industry can be a huge, intimidating monster for many. Think along the lines of that dark and scary maze at the end of the Triwizard tournament in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Yes, it can be that bad for millions of people who are overwhelmed by the flashy labels, crazy names, and exhaustive ingredient lists of thousands of brands. Thousands of powders, hundreds of flavors, and yet, they only aim to accomplish a few things. Mostly, they help you get ready for your workout, assist you in getting through your workout, or benefit you in recovering after your workout. Some companies like to put them in separate products that you buy and combine while some combine them into one proprietary blend for you, but what if you’re perfectly content working out without supplements?

Apr182016

Our Last Few Weeks in Pics

I was sick for about 1.5 weeks, out of the fitness game, but still eating well...this weather mirrored me

Fit was sick for about 1.5 weeks, out of the fitness game, but still eating well…this weather mirrored her

Apr132016

Crustless Kale Quiche

It’s one of those mornings…when you’re still eating quite healthy, feeling a little lazy, and want to have something yummy. You also need to clean out your fridge. What to do….quiche! We keep it crustless to keep the unneeded carbs and bad fats out and we throw in whatever may go bad in the following week. For our fridge, we had a whole lot of kale that I wanted to go through. Kale is a wonderful green and gives a nice texture to a quiche. You can follow my recipe, or you can use it as a base and throw what you want into it! Grab some eggs and here we go…

Apr122016

Grip Strength Workout

Whether you’re having a hard time opening a jar of pickles or can’t lockout that 600+ lb deadlift, your grip is an essential component to your overall strength. Instead of buying a pair of straps or the most technologically advanced chalk, the best practice is to develop a grip that can crush apples and tear phone books. These exercises will help you develop stronger hands and have a direct practical application to competitions such as powerlifting and strongman since you’re simulating the same technique. Even if you’re a martial artist who grapples or throws, being able to hold onto a gi is key and no matter what your goal, this routine will push your mind (and forearms) to the limit every set.

It’s important to note that in between every set, I will stretch the muscles that are being contracted for such a long amount of time. For example, I might use a thick rubber band (like the one from broccoli at the grocery) to expand my hands so they and my forearms are not in a state of constant flexion. I train many lab workers, nurses, and bakers who have developed the equivalent of a shin splint in their forearms because they’ve created such an extreme muscular imbalance. We want to avoid that in our effort to strengthen our grip. We don’t want to cause injury when trying to squeeze that level 3 Captain of Crush.

(I will mention that you’ll notice Captain of Crush work is not included in this workout. I generally superset every exercise in my bodybuilding upper day with my CoC so I avoid using them in this workout.)

Apr042016

Our Last Week or So in Pics

We continued to eat fairly healthy

Mar222016

What Happened to the Weekend?

The typical work week is Monday through Friday from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm with a lunch break from 12:30-1:30 pm, right? Those seem to be standard business hours, but there isn’t anything standard about our society and the hours of operations for businesses that are struggling to keep their expenses as low as possible while maximizing revenue. Now, throw the insane cost of living in some places and all of a sudden, you need to work way more than 40 paid hours a week just to pay rent. Let’s not even bring up student loans.

If you have a salary job, there’s a 90% chance that you’re working way more than 40 hours a week and skipping lunch breaks to hit every deadline for the three jobs that you’re doing since they’re not replacing the other people who left because they’d had enough of being a “team player.” Even with that salaried job, you’re not making nearly enough to cover your expenses so you only have one choice. You have to get a second job.

Mar192016

Exercise Spotlight: Standing Plate-Loaded Shrugs

We are continuing our series of exercise spotlights with today’s version of a shrug! A lot of people shy away from shrugs because they think that their traps will flame up Hulk-style. In reality, building your traps gives you a strong-looking frame to compliment the rest of your shoulders, arms, and back. Remember, it’s important to continue to add different exercises to your knowledge base so that your body doesn’t get used to anything. Let’s learn about the standing plate-loaded shrug.

Mar092016

Try Being Grateful

This title could be perceived as offhanded. However, imagine the tone as one of gentle nudging rather than being snootily rude. I’m not trying to throw in your face that you’re a brat, but just that each of us could–instead of complaining or being bitter–try instead to be grateful. I must confess, this was brought on by watching the very last episode of our beloved Downton Abbey (which I thought was a lovely ending). Reflecting on the life of the servants and such, I realized that, though fictional they are, there are plenty of people like them who are grateful despite a hardworking, have-little life. I found it to be a good lesson.

Instead of sourness and a generally negative attitude, let us try supplementing gratefulness first. The power of gratitude is enormous, be you a Lord or servant (or in these days, someone powerful or someone on the bottom of the ladder). Gratitude can pull someone from depression, from anger, from feeling lost. If being grateful to you is an impassive thing that you’ve never really thought about, try doing so now.

What are you grateful for?