Veggie Jambalaya

Nutrition: Veggie Jambalaya

Recipe 12oz pack of LightLife Smart Ground Veggie Crumbles 14oz pack of LightLife Smart Dogs Veggie Links *** NOT RECOMMENDED. I would double up on the Veggie Crumbles above. These dogs taste like sand. Going to find a better tasting veggie dog. 28oz can of diced tomatoes 32oz of Vegetable Broth 1 cup chopped celery 1 cup chopped bell peppers 1 cup diced white onion 2 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce 2 tbsp Tapatio (Hot Sauce) 2 tbsp Creole Seasoning (or to taste) 2 cups Cooked brown rice *** Instead of the Veggie crumbles & Links, you can use your ground meat & sausage of choice

Directions Cut up hot dog links into chunks, add to pot. Break up crumbles into small chunks, add to pot. Add the celery, bell peppers &onions to the pot. Add the vegetable broth & diced tomatoes (w/ tomato juice) to pot. Mix the pot contents & then add your Worcestershire, Hot Sauce & Creole seasoning. Stir & season to taste. (Be careful if using the vegetarian meat as they are generally already salty). Start crock pot & stir occasionally. Should cook in about 5-7hrs on low & 2-3hrs on high. In the meanwhile, cook the rice however you normally would & set aside. Once the crockpot is done, serve the mixture on a bed of rice. Enjoy.

Review Good substitute recipe for Fat Tuesday. Just add beads & a Zydeco band to complete. I used the Smart Dogs Veggie Links to try and replace the Andouille sausage but I am not a fan of that brand. If I had to make it again now, I would just double or triple the amount of Veggie Crumbles instead. I will update this blog post once I find a Veggie Sausage I like. Also the Veggie version doesnt need to cook as long the regular meat version. You can use ground beef/turkey/chicken or chicken chunks instead of the Veggie crumbles. Also replace the Veggie Links with regular hot links.

Tofu Potato Salad

Nutrition: Tofu Potato Salad

Recipe 1lb bag of small red potatoes 1pkg (16oz) of Extra Firm Tofu * 1pkg (16oz) of Soft Tofu 10 tbsp extra virgin olive oil ** 5 tbsp lemon juice 1/2 tsp tarragon 1/2 cup parsley 2 tbsp Spicy Brown Mustard (to taste) *** Salt to taste ****

Substitution Items * Can substitute w/ eggs, tuna or whatever you like ** Can substitute w/ Grapeseed Oil or another oil of your choice *** Can leave out the mustard or substitute with your own type **** I used a couple dashes of some light sea salt

Directions Scrub the potatoes & boil them until they're tender While the potatoes cook, pan fry your firm tofu to your taste *** If you used a substitution, i.e. Tuna, prepare it how you normally would separately Grab a blender and toss in the soft tofu, lemon juice, olive oil, tarragon & parsley. Blend items until a smooth mix is formed. *** You can add a couple tablespoons of water if the mix is too thick. Find a large mixing/serving bowl & pour the mixture into it. Add the mustard, some salt and mix by hand thoroughly. Add additional spice to taste. Once the potatoes finish cooking, drain the excess water either mash them or quarter them. Add the potatoes to the mixture along with the firm tofu. Mix thoroughly. Cover the bowl with foil & place in the freezer/refridgerator until the mixture is cooled. Enjoy.

Review Everyone really liked this one. It's also my first blog post that I didn't rip from The Chevolution. I like all types of tuna/egg/potato/macaroni salad but the underlying issue is that they all generally use a lot of mayo. Mayo is bad for those trying to watch their weight, keep their cholesterol in check or with heart issues. This recipe avoids all that & if you take it easy on the salt, it's low in sodium too. It also contains a good amount of fiber. There is a very high carb count on this for you Atkins folks however. If you drop the potatoes out of the equation and maybe go with a couple cans of tuna (or similar protein), you can significantly drop the carb count. This is great to consume on its own or in a sandwich.

Tomatoes w/ Garlic Bread Review

Nutrition: Tomatoes w/ Garlic Bread

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Review Another good recipe. It has very little prep time & tastes great. I used Garlic Bread from the grocer instead of making my own which further cut down on prep time. If you're a carb counter, the tomatoes are also good on a bed of your favorite lettuce, other greens or with some blackened firm tofu.

Stuffed Bell Peppers Review

Nutrition: Stuffed Bell Peppers

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Review Great recipe. Easy to make & prepares fairly quickly. The longest part is waiting on the rice but I don't have a rice cooker so that's my bad. Eating a lot of bell peppers upsets my stomach so next time I may leave out the rice & use the filling inside a baked potato (or other carb/starch). I used Soy Taco "Meat" (all vegetable filling) but you can replace this ingredient with ground turkey, beef or pretty much anything similar. If you do stick with the fake meats, be careful because a lot of vegetarian options (i.e. tofu dogs, soy chorizo, etc) contain a lot of sodium (salt). They are extremely processed and need that sodium to help taste & preservatives to help them keep. So while they are vegetarian & sometimes assumed to be healthy, you don't want to consume a bunch of sodium daily.

At-Home Dumbbell Workout

At the very bottom of this page are a list of simple exercises you can do with a just a dumbbell set & flat bench. I broke them into muscle groups to help you design a "split". A "split" type workout is breaking the body into regions and working out those regions in a specific manner. This works if you're going to workout semi-frequently. At least 3+ times a week. Bodybuilders often train this way. Another way to workout is to hit a variety of muscle groups each workout. This is more of a functional workout & will get you definition/endurance primarily. Boxers, MMA guys & other athletes tend to focus on this type of workout. No specific one is right, just focus on your own goals & needs. To drop weight or just tone up you may want to focus on the higher intensity "Boxer" style workout. If youre trying to get more mass, lift heavy and use the "Builder" style workout.

I would first focus on getting the equipment. Grab some dumbbells off craigslist or buy them from walmart, academy, etc. You just need maybe 2-3 pairs. You can add more later as you get stronger. If you buy some, try maybe a 10, 20 & 40lb set to start. Some exercises require lighter weight (Front Raise), while others you can use a heavier set (Chest Press). Also grab a Flat Bench too. Some exercises you can use an exercise ball if your balance is good. I personally never use one at all.

Second, try and form a habit. Working out is hobby but it's not always fun. Most folks go wrong by trying to start super hard, hitting the gym daily & they fizzle out quick. This overworks muscles that likely haven't had use in awhile & doesn't give you time to acclimate. Focus on maybe committing to at least one day a week & make sure you always hit that workout. Once that becomes a priority in your life, try and expand it to two days a week and so forth. Find a happy medium between working out and your real life.

I would use the exercises below to form your own workout. Everything is flexible, from the number of sets you do to how what muscle groups you work. I am just giving yall a couple of examples.

Builder Style Workout Example ***Lift Heavy, build muscle ***10-15 reps per set (medium/light weight) ***For Heavier weight, 6-10 reps is OK

Mon: Chest / Biceps 3-4 sets, Dumbbell Chest Press 3-4 sets, Push Ups 3-4 sets, Dumbbell Curls 3-4 sets, Concentration Curls

Wed: Shoulder / Back 3-4 sets, Dumbbell Front Raise 3-4 sets, Dumbbell Military Press 3-4 sets, Dumbbell Deadlift 3-4 sets, Dumbbell Bent Over Row

Fri: Legs / Triceps 3-4 sets, Dumbbell Lunges 3-4 sets, Dumbbell Calf Raises 3-4 sets, Dumbbell Kickback 3-4 sets, Overhead Tri Extension

Boxer Style Workout ***Pick 4-8 random exercises from various groups ***Use very little rest between exercises ***Try increasing either the weight or the number of reps each set ***On the last set do as many as you can (until failure, called a DropSet) ***This is lacking the cardio incorporated into fighter training

Example Boxer Style Workout #1 (you can break this into two separate workouts too) 3 sets, Push-Ups 3 sets, Bicep Curls 3 sets, Military Press 3 sets, Bent Over Raise 3 sets, Squats 3 sets, Kickbacks

Example Boxer Style Workout #2 SuperSets (supersets are two different exercises done together as one set of reps) (you can optionally increase reps or weight each set)

On Floor, Do 10reps Push-Ups then on your knees do 10reps Military Press Repeat 2-3 sets Standing, Do 10rep Hammer Curls then do 10rep Front Raises Repeat 2-3 sets Kneeling on Bench/Floor, Do 10rep Bent Over Rows then do 10rep Kickbacks Repeat 2-3 sets Standing, Do 10rep squats or lunges then do 10rep curls Repeat 2-3 sets

Exercises (w/ links to YouTube video examples)

A - Chest

Push-Up (Can do with dumbbell in hand) Click For Video Example Dumbbell Chest Press Click For Video Example Dumbbell Flys Click For Video Example Dumbbell Pullover Click For Video Example

B - Bicep

Dumbbell Curl Click For Video Example Dumbbell Concentration Curl Click For Video Example Dumbbell Hammer Curl Click For Video Example

C - Tricep

Two-Hand Overhead Tri Extension (Can do this seated as well) Click For Video Example Dumbbell Kickback Click For Video Example Dumbbell Tricep Press Click For Video Example Dumbbell SkullCrushers Click For Video Example

D - Shoulder

Dumbbell Military Press (Can do standing or seated, do not need an upright bench) Click For Video Example Dumbbell Front Raise Click For Video Example Dumbbell Lateral Raise (Technically a back exercise but it hits the shoulders alot too) Click For Video Example Dumbbell Bent Over Reverse Fly (Considered a back exercise by some also) Standing: Click For Video Example Seated: Click For Video Example

E - Back

Dumbbell Bent Over Row Click For Video Example Dumbbell Rear Delt Click For Video Example Dumbbell Bent-Over Raise Click For Video Example Dumbbell Deadlift Click For Video Example

F - Legs (Watch your form on these, don't hurt yourself)

Dumbbell Lunge Click For Video Example Dumbbell Calf Raises (Just use a large book, 2x4, or anything that gets your heel off ground & can support your weight) Click For Video Example Dumbbell Squats (I hate these but you can do them without raising your hands on the way up) Click For Video Example Dumbbell Romanian Deadlift (Hits lower back too, similar to regular deadlift) Click For Video Example