Vegetable Miso Soup

Obviously I need a little help from food bloggers like Lynn who are experts at food photography. Sad photo aside, here is a recipe for a soup I use as a lunch or supper in the winter. Full of vegetables and protein, this is a comfortable bowl to slip into. Soups in general are easy suppers: saute a few vegetables together (whatever you have in the fridge is fine), add some lean protein and soup stock and you have a satisfying, healthy way to end the day.

Vegetable Miso Soup (4 servings)

1/4 leek, halved and chopped
4 mushrooms, sliced
2 baby bok choy heads, chopped, including leaves
1 baby zucchini (also called Italian zucchini)
2 cloves garlic
1 Tbsp sesame oil
4 cups beef broth (low sodium, gluten gree)
6 oz extra firm, organic tofu*
1 Tbsp organic miso*
Get out your soup pot (any old medium sized pot will do). Add oil, leek and garlic. Saute until leek softened and garlic is aromatic. Add zucchini and mushrooms and tofu, saute briefly. Add stock and bring to a boil. Add bok choy and simmer until bok choy softened slightly. Remove from heat and stir in miso until dissovled. Serve hot. Store leftovers in individual servings (leftover glass jars from jams etc. are best) for lunch or suppers.

Buying organic tofu and miso is very important. Soybeans, like other beans, are one of the most toxicity-prone products out there. Chemicals and impurities gather in soybeans and remain in higher concentrations.

Group Fitness- Is it for you?

"Jump! For my love! Jump-in!" danced through the studio sound system as 24 women aerobercised to the left and one uncoordinated soul to the right. No, that poor soul was not me, but she was beside me, causing a quick step to avoid her. Bless her, I thought; she had been out of coordination for the entire 40min class but still had the largest smile on her face.

A 40 minute fitness class between 12 and 1 is part of my new fitness schedule on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Group fitness classes are outside of my safety zone, as I'm much more likely to head to the gym with my headphones on and pump out a split alone to music which does not include "Jump! For my Love!". But these are the reasons I joined group fitness classes this time around:

1. My weight room is too busy in January: with all the New Years resolutions to be worked out on the benches there are sometimes 4 people (usually men) working in on one of them; I work out in the largest fitness facility in the city, so if I experience this, I know you do too. Joining a group class ensures my spot in a fitness function without having to bustle my way in among the often inexperienced new years' gymies
2. Cardio equipment has line-ps in January: Yes, with 2-3 people standing behind a treadmill, waiting for their turn to punish their fat cells it's hard to see the actual cardio equipment. I'll wait till these gymies taper out in mid Feb to attempt any cardio in the gym. A group fitness class whips me into cardio zones I don't push myself into. Sometimes faster than I am used to, sometimes slower, they are teaching me that variety is exciting, and rest is important as well.
   
3. Meeting new people: This has been the scariest part of the group fitness experience. There are women there who have named their firstborns after the fitness instructor and can tell you what studio they teach in on what day. Their choreographed movements mirror the instructor's perfectly- and who the hell am I to bust in on their clique? I'm the newby, who is just as insecure about my appearance and fitness level as they are, and I'm smiling and sweating along with them. Common ground found, and laughing and clapping together at the end of a sweat session is inevitable by the end of the 3rd class.
   
4. Challenge yourself: I work myself harder than anyone else, but that only means picking up the 25lb'er instead of the 15lb'er. Going heavier or faster is not always the best training decision to create results. Challenging your body in different ways, through different sports and methods of training can create astounding differences in your body shape and fitness level. The first 40 min Fitness class humbled me greatly as I couldn't move my arms for such sore shoulders, shocking as normally I throw up more lat lifts in the gym, but doing it differently in class was so effective.

So incorporating group classes into my routine makes my schedule read as follows:
Monday: 30 min cardio, 1 hour Pilates advanced group class
Tuesday: Full body workout, 40 minute Fitness group class
Wednesday: Lower body workout, 30 min cardio
Thursday: 40 minute Fitness group class
Friday: Full body workout, 30 min cardio
Saturday: 90 min power yoga
Sunday: 90 min dance class

And for interests sake (mine, not yours probably) my meals since monday have read as follows:
Monday: 6 egg white omlette, 1/4c creamy rice cereal/ 1/2c yams, 3oz chicken breast/ 3oz tuna, 1 small apple, 1c mixed vegetables/ 3oz chicken breast, 1c raw carrots/ 3 oz chicken breast, 1c mixed greens
Tuesday: 6 egg white omlette, 1/4c creamy rice cereal/ 1/2c yams, 3oz chicken breast/ 1.5c borscht (lean turkey), 1 small apple/ 1.5c vegetable miso tofu soup/ 1/2c plain non-fat yogurt, 1 scoop Optimum Nutrition Whey protein
Wednesday: 6 egg white omlette, 1/4c creamy rice cereal/ 1/2c yams, 3oz chicken/ 1.5c borscht (lean turkey), 1 small apple/ 3oz chicken breast, 1c raw carrots/ 1.5c vegetable miso tofu soup
Thursday (planned): 6 egg white gluten-free oat pancakes with 1/8c plain non-fat yogurt as topping/ 3oz chicken breast, 1/2c yams/ 1.5c borscht, 1 small apple/ 3oz chicken breast, 1c raw carrots/ 3oz sesame baked tofu, roasted tomatoes and spagetti squash

Supplements (daily): 2T ground flax, 2T salba, 1T coconut oil, 2 calcium, 2 muiltivitamins, 2 holy basil, 2 adrenal support, 1 fish oil, 2c mate tea, at least 5L water and up to 3 cups of green tea, sugar free gum.

21 Days

If you are a member of the human population (most likely) then you have either committed to a new habit as a new year's resolution, or entirely rejected the resolution concept postulating that you can commit to anything, anytime regardless of the calendar date. It's my experience that we fall into one or the other. Most likely, if you have set a resolution, then it is one of the following:
1. Get fit/Lose weight- this is the number one resolution to make each year, and I bet that many of us make this one every single new years. Even enjoying one or two more pints on December 31 just because you're going cold turkey the next day.
2. Reduce debt- normally I would say this would be lower down the list of common resolutions, but I'm placing it at second place because of the current recessional climate. Isn't this one ironic, considering all those Christmas presents you just bought weeks ago are sitting on that credit card? And won't you do the same next year to ensure little daughter Mabel gets her pony or son Dustin gets his Wii?
3. Start saving- related to the previous resolution and very common. My dad always said to have 3 months living expenses in cash saved up just in case. How many of us have that kind of cash (not credit!) available?
4. Devotion- spending more time with God, Allah, your inner divine presence (whatever you subscribe to). This can include joining a church young adult group, meditation or even daily Yoga practice.
5. Spending more time with family and friends- I hope that this one caught a lot of us this year. I'm currently reading a book that suggests that making and cultivating positive relationships is the purpose of the human species. So use those bipedal hips and walk over to see your neighbor.
Now if yours is not listed, share it in the comment section. There are many changes we could make; what an exciting time of year to be able to recommit to them. For those of you who eschew making resolutions, make today that day you commit- doesn't matter what calendar day it is right?
Now whatever you have chosen:
1. Practice it for 21 days straight- it takes 21 days to form a new habit. Take a 21 day challenge to do 10 minutes of yoga a day, for example. Or pack your lunch to work for 3 straight weeks.
2. Make it Applicable to your current lifestyle. I may say I want to write a book this year, but as I'm currently focused on a professional career, and master's degree a book is outside my sphere of focus. Instead, I'll focus on developing a professional leadership blog.
3. Ensure it is Realistic in light of your resource supply; it should comfortably fit within your time and money available to you. Do not stretch yourself to afford a pricey personal trainer, instead enroll in group fitness classes as an example.