Workin' Out

Four out of Five mornings, you will find Charles and me trying to maintain our health by biking/swimming respectively. We wonder why it takes so much effort to stay on top of the aging process but feel grateful for the abilities we do have to actually exercise and for the yard and equipment that makes it possible.

Mmmm, Ice Cream Sammies!

For a long time Dan and I had this love affair with Fat Boy ice cream sandwiches. We had them quite frequently and they really hit the spot when we wanted something sweet. But since we've been trying to make some healthy changes we decided to try Skinny Cow ice cream sandwiches, and let me tell you I can hardly tell the difference. I'm just as satisfied after eating a Skinny Cow and a lot less guilty. They're honestly really good.

So here's the breakdown per sandwich:

Fat Boy
Calories 220
Calories from Fat 90

Skinny Cow
Calories 140
Calories from Fat 15

Fantastic Healthy Pasta!!!

This is a great recipe that Dan and I have made many times. It has loads of flavor, plenty of veggies, and is meaty enough to keep you full. Check out the calories per cup below!
(Note: we just use water to deglaze the pan and we haven't yet used whole grain penne but Barilla makes excellent whole grain pasta with great flavor and texture)

Sausage and Roasted Vegetable Penne

Ingredients
1 sweet onion, cut into wedges
1 medium zucchini, sliced in 1/2 lengthwise
1 red bell pepper, cheeks removed
1/2 pound button mushrooms, stemmed
2 1/2 tablespoons olive oil , divided
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 pint grape tomatoes, washed and dried
2 sweet or hot Italian sausages, thinly sliced or casings removed
1/4 cup white wine
12 ounces whole-grain penne, cooked according to package instructions, 1/2 cup pasta water reserved
Freshly grated Parmesan, for garnish

Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
In a bowl, toss all the vegetables, except the tomatoes, with 1 1/2 tablespoons oil. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Arrange on a baking sheet and roast, until caramelized, about 30 minutes, turning vegetables halfway through the cooking time. In a small bowl, add the tomatoes and the remaining olive oil and toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and add to the baking sheet, at the halfway point of cooking, to caramelize.
Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium heat, add the sausage and saute until cooked through. Turn up the heat and deglaze with white wine. Once the vegetables are cooked, cool slightly, then coarsely chop. Add the vegetables and any pan juices to the sausage in the skillet. Toss in the cooked penne, adding reserved pasta water, if needed, to moisten. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and serve in bowls topped with Parmesan.

Makes about 11 cups
195 Calories per cup

Enjoy!!!

Counting (lots of) Calories

Friday:

Breakfast: Two bowls of Raisin Bran Crunch: 460 cals

Snack: Two fistfuls of trail mix: 320 cals

Lunch: Double Cheese Burger: 670 cals

Med Fry: 400 cals

Vanilla Shake: 680 cals

Diner: Bunch of pork: 300 cals

Green marshmellow jello: 400 cals

Pink pudding/jelloish thing: 250 cals

Pasta Salad: 175 cals

Potato Salad: 275 cals

Bite of wedding cake: 50 cals

Total: 3,980

I figure knowing is half the battle, so I get to take off half of those calories, which puts me below the recommended 2000 calorie diet. I should have had more cake.

Yes, we had banana splits for dinner on Saturday!

I know. It's really difficult to confess this...but nothing else sounded good for dinner that night, so Charles, Holly and I just had a party. Hey...at least we added fruit! Do we get any healthy points yet?

Hello Fambly

I came up with the idea for this blog a while ago. I've been trying to educate myself a little bit about nutrition and fitness out of my own desire to live a healthy lifestyle, especially as I hope to become a Mom in the near future. Dan and I started keeping a fitness and nutrition journal and I've been watching shows like "Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution" and trying to do yoga and pilates for exercise. Anyway, I would love my journey towards better health and awareness to include all of my family.
The fact of the matter is that the biggest killers in the U.S. are all preventable diseases that can be deterred by a healthy lifestyle: eating right and staying fit. So not only do we prolong our lives when we take care of our bodies but we make the many days we spend living much more enjoyable for us and the people around us.
I've invited all the family members to be authors on this blog. I'd love it for all of us to share things we learn about fitness and nutrition and our own successes and failures as we try to live a balanced and healthy life. I'm thinking of sharing things like healthy recipes that I've calculated the calories per serving on, links to articles and sites that give valuable information and personal experiences about the struggles of living a healthy lifestyle.
I love you all and want all of you to be around as long as possible to enjoy life with me and the kids that I don't yet have.

May we live long and prosper! (nanu, nanu)