Trimarni Coaching and Nutrition

  We started off the day with a ~3 hour bike ride on our road bikes. We left around 10am and the weather was weird - misty, grey, not too warm, not too cold. We welcomed the fresh crisp air and took in the beautiful sights of nature, farm animals and fall colors. It's incredible that after six years of living in Greenville, SC we are still discovering new routes. Although our country roads are typically pretty quiet from cars, this recent ride treated us with no more than ten cars passing us over just over 50 miles.  After we returned home around 1:30pm, I cleaned up, had a meal and then got to work in the kitchen. While Thanksgiving food centers around traditions, I see this holiday as a way to create memories over food. And there's no better way to create positive memories than around delish food that feels just as good on the taste buds as it does in the belly.  I wanted to share the recipes that I used to create the dishes that I prepared for Thanksgiving. These recip...

Picture source As a lacto-ovo vegetarian, Tempeh is one of my favorite, go-to plant-based protein sources. An Indonesian staple, tempeh is a cultured food that makes for a protein-rich plant based meal. Unlike tofu, tempeh is dry and densely compact, which makes it great for marinating, crumbling or grilling. And denser than tofu, is is also more concentrated in calories and nutrients. For example, a 3-ounce serving of cooked tempeh (~1/2 cup) contains ~166 calories, 10g fat and 17g protein. In a 3-ounce serving of firm tofu, you will find ~53 calories, 2.3g fat and ~6g protein. Tempeh is also a good source of iron (4.5 mg in 1 cup) and a complete plant protein providing all nine essential amino acids. Although tempeh does contain probiotics, the short fermentation period and cooking decreases the lifespan of the beneficial live bacteria. The process of making tempeh involves fermenting cooked soybeans and binding them together when exposed to a mold culture from the Rhizop...

Some of my favorite meals are the ones that involve no recipe but a lot of creativity. Cauliflower is not my most favorite vegetable but I picked one up at the grocery so I could make myself do something yummy with it in the kitchen. I first thought about baking it in the oven but that seemed rather boring as I was feeling a overly creative yesterday. As I was deciding what to do with this white vegetable, I cooked some lentils (about 1 cup) in water on the stove top. I then added some quinoa (about 1 cup) to the cooked lentils (with a little more water) because, well, why not? I seasoned the lentil quinoa mix with a little salt. Still stuck with the cauliflower, I softened a pack of sliced tempeh in the microwave for 90 seconds and then cooked it on a skillet in a little olive oil until browned on all sides. In the same large skillet on medium heat, I sauteed chopped onions (about 1/2 large onion) and garlic (2 large clove) because I knew that it would bring out a lot of flower i...

                                  Wouldn't it be nice if you always had a meal ready for you immediately after your workouts? Think about it. No more processed food because you are too hungry to cook. No more fast food/take-out because you can't find time to cook. No more incomplete meals because your food options are limitless. No more snacking your way to a meal because you are too starving to wait for a meal. No more sabotaging workouts from not eating the right foods at the right time to repair and recover.  Sadly, athletes are busy and ironically, food is an afterthought. Well, not so much food being the afterthought (as athletes do eat) but food prep isn't always a priority. With every minute of the day planned and occupied, many athletes don't put meal prep on the hierarchy of "things to do" each day. This often backfires as athletes will find themselves not meeting energy needs, not r...

Over several years, I've slowly changed my lifestyle habits and moved myself more and more away from a heavy processed and convenience-food diet toward a very real food diet. Some dietary changes happened quickly whereas other changes required a different appreciation and time to create new habits. I really value what real food can do for a body, when it comes to health and performance so I've worked really hard over many years to make some swaps when it comes to incorporating more real food into my diet. I'm not against processed food and don't cringe at the thought of "food" in a bag but I do believe that some foods, like well-fortified foods, help to keep people healthy in all parts of our world. And since I don't have an off-limit food list, I never feel guilty, anxious or remorseful if I eat something processed. I have a most of the time diet and then there are foods that I eat some of the time/on occasion. The great thing is that neither one i...

5:30am Wed track workout 4pm Wed swim workout It's no shocker that my busy life is filled with activity and I love challenging my body and mind with a swim-bike-run lifestyle.  If you are a regular reader of this blog, it's likely you feel the same way about your life (perhaps maybe a different activity/sport) But my amazing body allows me to do so much, both in life and with triathlons and I constantly remind myself that the food I eat has the opportunity to enhance my life, fuel my workouts and reduce risk for disease.  Food is so powerful! In October of 2011, I had the great opportunity to write an article for Ironman called " Fueling Kona: Your Daily Plate"  This article was special to me not only because I was able to share my passion for seeing food for fuel and for health but also because I was participating in the 2011 Ironman World Championship and my article was featured during Ironman Kona race week.  Here are two r...

What a beautiful, flavorful, delicious, healthy way to fuel and nourish your body. I hope you enjoy my latest Trimarni plant strong creation! Ingredients Serves 2  Romaine lettuce (chopped) 1 package tempeh Olive oil White onion Red quinoa (1/2 cup dry + 1 cup water) Yellow pepper 1 can chickepeas Tahini paste Salt  Roasted yellow pepper hummus 1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line baking sheet with foil (just enough to place yellow bell pepper in the middle. Lay down the pepper on foil and bake for 10 minutes. Give the pepper a turn and bake for 10 more minutes. Remove when slightly charred and soft.  (You may as well roast some other veggies and/or protein while you have the oven on) 2. Pour 1 can chickpeas (not drained) in blender or food processor and add 1 tbsp tahini paste, 2 tsp olive oil and 1/2 charred yellow bell pepper.  3. Blend until evenly combine. Add additional tbsp or two of water if needed to meet your consistency needs....

This endurance body is happily fueled by real food. AND Plant strong for almost 21 years. A Karel creation: Jasmine rice and a stir fry of tempeh, peanuts, onions, mushrooms, peppers and marinara on top arugula. This creation was enjoyed last night and made my tummy/muscles super happy for an early morning wake-up call (4:20am) for a 5:30am track workout.  Love your afternoon snack Honor your biological hunger in the afternoon. Do not expect your body to allow you to go from lunch to dinner without food (especially if more than 4 hours between meals or if working out in the evening). A mid afternoon snack is a great way to nourish your body and boost energy.  Here's one of my fav mid day snacks: 1/2 cup Chobani Greek yogurt + fresh fruit chopped + a few spoonfuls of KIND or organic granola. Enjoy! Refueling from a long brick Asparagus, mushrooms and tofu tossed with pasta noodles and marinara, topped with Parmesan. Karel had the same (larger portion) but chicke...

It's no fun coming home hungry after a long day/commute, evening workout or late meetings and feeling the pressure to cook.  We all have crammed-packed schedules but even if you want more hours in the day to get everything done, you'd likely fill-up those hours as well. Rather then beating yourself up that you are failing on certain areas of you life that may improve your overall health, remind yourself that regardless if you find the time or make the time, you do have time that you may not be using wisely and nothing is more important to your busy life than keeping your body in good health. You know a home cooked meal will make you feel great inside and with you in control of the portions, ingredients and timing, there is a lot to benefit from when it comes to preparing food at home.  So the hope is that when you make small changes with your diet and keep them up, you will feel the effects of those changes and not only form new healthy habits but you may also feel ...

Trimarni lifestyle change tip:  If you have between 10-30 min when you come home from work before an evening workout or meeting/event, start your dinner prep and finish as much as possible so you don't come home starving and convince yourself that you can't wait the time to cook a real food, balanced meal.  Here's a creation that I prepared in 25 minutes before our evening swim practice on 1/15 (I planned for leftovers): Tempeh, mushrooms, frozen veggie mix (corn, peas, carrots), onions, garlic, balsamic, olive oil, kale, turmeric, pinch of salt, chili pepper, slivered almonds. Also, 1 pot of quinoa (1/2 cup dry to 1 cup boiling water).  The final creation! Swim workout Main set (at the very end of our 75 minute practice): 3xs (with fins): 3x100s fast swim on 1:30 3x50s fast kick on 1 minute Continue 2 more rounds. Total yards: 3800 After my morning fuel (8 ounce skim milk + 1 spoonful chia seeds + 1/2 cup cheerios - a new creation I have been us...

There's food inspiration everywhere and depending on your creativity in the kitchen, the possibilities are endless. I recently received my first every wok from my brother and his new wife and I couldn't wait to put it to good use. When I was reading a recent issue of Nutrition Action Healthletter, I came across this page on stir-fry recipes.   Instant Trimarni Motivation!!   One of my favorite proteins in my plant strong diet is Tempeh. Actually, Karel is the one that turned me to LOVE tempeh after he had a wrap from Nat http://nativesunjax.com/ with Tempeh inside of it. I am a big fan of soy (in it's whole form) because it is a complete protein and contains all essential amino acids. So, not only is this ancient fermented soybean food great for my health but tempeh is also protein packed (20g per 4 ounce serving) which makes for a great fuel in my active lifestyle.     With the following ingredients in my kitchen, it w...