Protein Challenge: Week 1 Update

There's a lot more of this in my future. #eatbeef

So for the past 7+ days I have been journaling my food intake to keep track of how much protein I consume on a daily basis. I thought as a meatatarian, I would have absolutely no problem eating 30 grams of protein at every meal, for a total of 90 grams daily.

Boy, was I wrong.

Turns out, breakfast is difficult. Like, really difficult. Even on a protein-heavy day I may only be getting about 20 grams at breakfast, another 15-20 at lunch and then I am trying to amp it up at dinner to meet the 90 (and I'm falling short, often). But I have come to some cool conclusions, thus far:

1 - I am not craving snacks in the middle of the afternoon like I used to before starting the #proteinchallenge. I chalk this up to my increased protein keeping me feeling fuller, longer.
2 - I have gone running seven times since I started the challenge and I can honestly say that I'm running faster than normal. To be clear, I'm not cutting 30 seconds off of my average mile pace but I am noticing that my usual average of 8:45 per mile is now a lot closer to 8:37. I know, you're saying "whoopty do - 8 seconds/mile no big deal." But if you stretch that 8 seconds out over 13 miles it comes out to almost two minutes off of a half marathon! And I even ran at that faster pace while I was in Denver this week, where it was MUCH hillier and the air is a lot thinner (i.e. less oxygen) than in Kansas.
3 - We are running out of yogurt, string cheese and eggs a LOT more quickly than normal.

So, I'm really looking forward to the next 20 days of the challenge and I hope to be able to keep this lifestyle and diet change going long after the challenge is over.

If you want to sign up, you can EASILY do so by clicking here. The challenge is 30 days, starting from the day you sign up. So you could start today, next Thursday or even in mid-May and it would run for the following 30 days.

Who out there is also doing the Protein Challenge? How are you feeling?

Until next time,
~ Buzzard ~

Taking Control with the Protein Challenge!

Today I take control of my race-training and overall health by starting the Protein Challenge. The 30-Day Protein Challenge is a fun, step-by-step way to help you get an optimal amount of protein throughout your day. Significant research shows that some people can lose and/or maintain a healthy weight, support a healthy metabolism, and age more vibrantly when they consume more high-quality protein, within calorie goals.

Since I am extremely interested in maintaining a healthy weight and fueling my active lifestyle, I am stoked to be participating. This may surprise you, but even a meatatarian like myself sometimes has a hard time getting enough protein. Which is why I will be utilizing the awesome tools for the Protein Challenge like the food journal, cheat sheet and on-the-go protein snack idea.

For example, I've already got a start on today by having two scrambled eggs with shredded cheese and a yogurt for breakfast. While delicious, that meal only had 23.2 grams of protein and the goal is to get 30 grams of protein at every meal. This is going to be challenging but fun!

Breakfast full o' protein

I will be blogging about my experiences here weekly (maybe twice weekly, who knows) and how I feel, what I'm eating, etc. I fully expect to feel more energized and, hopefully, improve my performance in some upcoming races!

I have full confidence that my increased protein intake
will have me smiling like this a lot more often!

I encourage you to explore the 30-Day Protein Challenge, and if so inclined, sign up and do it yourself!

What do you have to lose? Nothing.

What do you have to gain? Energy. A healthier lifestyle.

Take control!

Until next time,
~ Buzzard ~

Pounding the Pavement and Inhaling Protein

 

My feet and legs hurt - I think it's from kicking so much butt by breaking my 10K PR a week and a half ago. Or it could be because I need new running shoes. Either or.

Whatever the reason, I better get them quick, fast and in a hurry since I'm less than a month out from the race Kelly and I are running in Kansas City on April 18. Boy howdy, it's coming up fast!

From last Saturday to this coming Saturday, I'm scheduled to run roughly 35h miles but I'm a horrible traveling runner, meaning I don't do a good job of sticking to my training when I'm out-of-state, so I'll probably be relegated to about 25ish miles. Not bad, but not great.

I'm having trouble deciding/noticing if I'm getting any faster or more resilient during this round of training. I live in a holler among the Flint Hills, so GPS reception is sketchy and at any given time my Nike+ running app could be telling me I've run 1/2 mile farther than I actually have, which [falsely] leads me to believe I'm running 8:15 minute miles for 10 miles straight. Impossible? Absolutely not. Probably inaccurate? Yes.

So while I'm not sure if I'm going to break my PR next month, one thing that I'm certain about is that this girl is getting hangry quite often. Generally after a long run.

One of my favorite beef meals - smoked beef brisket.

After a long run, which I personally quantify as anything over six miles, I have a noticeable desire for protein, specifically meat. When I say “noticeable,” I mean that I must eat some sort of meat within a half hour or I may chew my arm off to suffice. Sometimes I will eat a few slices of lunch meat to hold me over until I can prepare a full meal or sometimes I will schedule my long runs so that I arrive back at my house roundabout the time my husband has finished grilling lunch or supper, which allows me to dive into a burger, steak or chop almost immediately after my workout. If I don’t get some sort of meat or protein in my system pronto, I feel very sluggish and have a hard time functioning the rest of the day.

Give me all of the flank steak. All. of. it.

Why am I craving protein? Well, that's easy: protein helps support a strong, lean body which is obviously important to me. Furthermore, a high-protein diet helps build and replenish muscles while at the same time providing the "full" feeling meaning if I'm full from steak I'm not chowing down on Cheetos or cupcakes. I get most of my protein from beef and pork but I am also a huge fan of scrambled eggs with ham and cheese and a big glass of milk. I personally believe that breakfast for supper is one of life's underappreciated treats. Actually, I think breakfast food anytime is pretty much the bees knees.

Anyhow, since I have no desire to stop running due to my fondness of my current pant size, I've got to devise a way to get more protein into my system in order to keep the Cheetos and cupcakes out of my system. Those items tend to mysteriously disappear shortly after they are purchased. Weird.

Next week, I'll have a protein update that I'm excited to share, a new meaty recipe and hopefully, some new kicks!

Until next time,
~ Buzzard ~

Fancy Feast at the Frobuzz House: Lobster Dinner with Zucchini Chips

Could I have put any more Fs in the title? Probably so.

Every once in awhile, the Ninja and I break our normal routine of pork chops, tacos, lasagna soup and repurposed beef roasts and have a real fancy meal. This time, it was lobster tails that I got 1/2 price at Dillon's on clearance ($5 for two 5 ounce lobster tails). Huzzah!

Last night's meal was definitely the most simple supper I have prepared in a long time -- broiled lobster tails, zucchini chips and better-than-the-real-deal Cheddar Bay Biscuits (my version).

I started by prepping and baking the zucchini chips. I got the recipe from this Zucchini Round Up site which hosts a plethora of zucchini recipes for those who have a ton in their freezer from a prolific summer garden. Three easy steps:

• Slice zucchini (a little bit more narrow than 1/4 inch is best) and place on parchment paper lined baking sheet

  

  Ready for the oven

• Use pastry brush to apply EVOO (extra virgin olive oil) - sprinkle with kosher salt

Maybe a bit too salty?

• Bake at 225 F for 2 hours or until crispy.

Finished product - a bit dark on the edges but still devour-able!

As usual, I deviated from the recipe and this time it wasn't super successful. First off, I didn't brush the olive oil on, I sort of drizzled it. I barely remember to brush my hair every day so of course, I wasn't about to dig for the pastry brush to groom zucchini. Well, I should have because some chips got more EVOO than others. Secondly, I put way too much kosher salt on these bad boys. The Ninja loves salt and even he thought they were too salty at the end. So, season wisely because they will shrink and then your salt amount sort of doubles. Lastly, I had to use the oven for the cheese biscuits so I cranked it up to 400 for the last 30 minutes of baking and sort of *cough burntsomeofthechips cough* so I highly suggest either baking your bread beforehand or doing the chips earlier in the evening.

Despite all my flubs, they turned out pretty well and it's definitely a recipe I will make again!

Moving on to the protein on the plate - the lobster tails were so easy to make they only really warrant a short paragraph.

• Cut shell off of tail
• Drizzle EVOO on tail
• Season with lemon pepper
• Broil for 10 minutes

Easy prep work - the hardest part was cutting off the shell!

Serve with heavenly cheddar biscuits, zucchini chips (or side of your choice) and enjoy!


A whole plate of delicious for a fraction of the cost of a Red Lobster dinner

There you have it - a unique meal that was affordable and delicious! What are your favorite simple supper recipes?

Until next time,
~ Buzzard ~