Low Calorie Mince Pies

Not to sure if you know, but a bought mince pie will typically contain 200-300 Caloires.

This recipe brings things down to a diet friendly 102Kcal per PIe.

Ingredients

• Pastry Ingredients:
• 130g Chobani Fat Free Greek Yoghurt
• 130g Doves Farm Gluten Free Rice Flour
• 1/2tsp Salt
• 1/2tsp Xylitol (4g) or Sweetener/ Sugar of your choice.
• 1/3tsp Xantham Gum (optional but helps bind!)

• Filling Ingredients:
• 190g Dried Mixed Fruit (Sultanas, Currants, Raisins, Candied Lemon Peel)
• 1 Large Apple (150g)
• 1tbsp Lemon Juice (15ml)
• 1tsp Nutmeg
• 1tsp Cinnamon
• 1/2tsp Ginger

Nutrition Info

• 1 Mince Pie
• 102kcals Calories
• 2.4g Protein
• 23g Carbs
• 0.3g Fats

Instructions

• 1.To begin, mix all of your pastry ingredients in a bowl and knead with your hands. Push and squeeze the dough, working it for around 5 minutes. To begin with it will look dry and crumbly but by kneading it eventually you will end up with a smooth dough. Wrap this in cling film and place in the fridge whilst you make your filling.
• 2.For the mincemeat filling, grate your apple into a saucepan using a cheese grater (and including the skin), then add in your dried fruit, lemon juice and the rest of the spices.
• 3.Place the saucepan over the hob on a low heat, and let it cook away for 15-20 minutes, stirring it often and with each stir mashing the mixture a little too. It may stick to the pan so be prepared for a fight when washing up, but to get it to that sticky filling stage it is a must! Taste a little bit and adjust spices and flavours to suit your needs if anything wants changing! Once your filling is ready, leave it to one side to cool.
• 4.Pre-heat your fan oven to 200 degrees celsius and prepare a shallow 12 hole bun (or muffin) tin with a little spray oil or grease to make sure the mince pies don’t stick. I wouldn’t advise a silicone tray as they will cook cakeier rather than crisping up a little.
• 5.On a flat work surface, spread a little bit of flour and place your pastry in the middle. Grab a rolling pin and carefully roll the pastry out to the thickness of a 50p piece. I found by rolling it bit by bit, flipping the dough over a few times and working it from different angles, I was able to achieve a nice even roll. You may have to sprinkle a little extra rice flour a few times to stop it sticking.
• 6.Using a 7cm Circular Cookie Cutter (one large enough to span the top of your muffin tin), cut out a circle and place it inside a space on your muffin tin. It should fill the whole muffin space to the top. Repeat this process with the rest of your pastry until you have 12 empty mince pie cases ready to fill. (You should have some dough left over for the tops!)
• 7.Spoon your mincemeat filing into each of the mince pies, packing it down tightly so that they are all even and level to the top of your mince pie pastry casing. Now all you need to do is add the final topping.
• 8.I re-rolled my dough so it was nice and thin, then using a 5cm cookie cutter this time, I created 12 ‘lids’ to top my mince pies and I wasn’t left with any remaining dough, it was the perfect amount. Hopefully if you haven’t made your pies too thick you will achieve the same.
• 9.Now your mince pies are ready, place on the middle shelf of your fan oven and cook for around 20 minutes at 200 degrees celsius. Half way through I pushed down the tops to make sure that the mincemeat was nice and compact and the tops stuck on.
• 10.After 20 minutes, remove from the oven, let them cool slightly and enjoy your guilt free mince pies! Let me know how you get on, and Merry Christmas.

Pre Xmas Fat Loss!

So its 1st December and Christmas is just around the corner and 2 objectives;

1) Enjoy and partake in Xmas festivities
2) Don't pile on the pounds

Who's with me on this?

After helping a client drop 3 1/2 across a weekend I thought to myself best jump on this bandwagon and drop some fast pounds myself.

Why?

Well, I want to enjoy xmas who doesn't?

Just thinking about the foods that get rolled out at xmas is getting me salivating.  Now I'm not going to be stuffing my face at every opportunity, but taking the time to enjoy all the smells and flavours that come with christmas I am down for.

The big thing for me at Xmas is my wonderful Wife's Christmas Cake, seriously the slices I cut myself are a joke!

Ok so how am I going about it?  I am going to remove the carbs from my diet, I will still have veggies in my diet but for the next couple of weeks rice, potato, pasta, Oats (yes Oats!) are all out.

Now I don't often recommend going without carbs but as a short term measure having a very simple principle to stick to can be a great short term quick fix.

In terms of application I will be looking to eat low carb throughout December apart from those times when I'm at Xmas and Birthday celebrations.

When I am out and about I should add I will still be eating in moderation an not eating purely for the sake of eating.

I will still be eating several times per day and increasing my intake of veggies and salads with the addition of a small amount of fats.

My Calories will be staying similar but I am sure there will be a small drop across the day and week.

As a result of this drop in my day to day calorie intake I will have in effect freed up some of my normal Calorie intake to go enjoy myself without adding on the pounds!

End result,

I enjoy Xmas, gain no weight and have a big smug smile on my face!!

Yay,

Talk later Christmas lovers.

EAT STEAK, LOSE FAT!

10 Benefits of eating Protein-the key to Fat loss!

In the past there has been a lot of talk about Protein in terms of increasing Muscle strength and size and was often seen as the food reserved for the gyms weightlifters.

As more studies are performed and research papers released, the more Protein has been identified as a strong part of a Fat Loss diet.

Below are 10 reasons as to why Protein offers big benefits to your Fat Loss efforts. 

#1. Satiety.  Protein leaves you feeling fuller and for longer, particularly when you are used to a low Protein diet.  With Protein being so filling you feel fuller sooner and so are less inclined to over eat.

#2. TEF. The Thermic Effect of Food is the amount of energy required to digest what you have eaten.  Proteins require the most amount of calories for you to digest eat.  By including Protein in meals you achieve greater energy expenditure helping you towards achieving a calorie deficit.

#3. Improved Performance.  When dieting with a higher level of Protein there is still opportunity for muscular development.  The result of this can be improved Sporting Performance gains in strength.

#4. Regulates Blood Sugar Levels.  As Whole-food Proteins are slow to digest, they will slow down the absorption of faster digesting foods-particularly Carbohydrates.  The resulting effect being that the energy Spike with the following energy crash is moderated and energy is provided at a slower rate.

#5. Improved Sleep.  Research has suggested that high Protein diets will allow people to sleep better and less likely to wake during the night.  This is believed to be due to chemical transmitters being in a more balanced state.  In addition the TEF of a bigger meal at night may trigger the need for rest whilst the body channels energy to digestion.

#6. Stronger Tendons and faster injury recovery.  Protein Contains the amino acids necessary faster repair and recovery muscle and also tendons.  This reduces the risk of injury during regular and intense exercise.

#7. Better Bone Density.  A high Protein intake has been seen to increase bone density and reduce the risk of Osteoporosis.  Whilst in the past it was suggested high Protein reduced bone density due to the release of sodium, Potassium and Calcium.    

Studies have since shown due to the high amino acid profile in your diet the net result is an increase in bone density.

In addition as you gain muscular strength the skeleton will increase its strength in support.  

#8. Lowers blood pressure.  A 4 week study gave individuals suffering hypertension an additional 60g of Protein each day and simultaneously reducing Carbohydrates (this maintained the daily calorie intake).  

This group that increased Protein intake and controlled Calorie intake saw a drop in blood pressure of 4.9mm Hg Systolic pressure and a 2.7mm Hg reduction in diastolic pressure.

#9. Muscle Sparing during training.  During intense exercise the body uses many fuel sources, on of which is converting muscle to energy, Gluconeogenesis.  By regularly maintaining a higher level of Protein during extended periods of dieting, muscle will be better spared.

#10. Better Brain Function.  The Omega 3 Fatty DHA, Carnosine, Creatine, Vitamin D, and Vitamin B12 all provide the building blocks of brain messengers that signal motivation, optimal cognition, wakefulness and energy production.

These nutrients are only found in whole food proteins and supplements, they are not available in plant based whole foods.

Take away points

1) Aim to eat a wide range of Proteins including poultry, Beef, Game, Eggs, Fish, Dairy, Nuts, Pulses and Beans.

2) For optimal Fat loss aim to eat 1.6g per Kg of Body Weight, which is double the RDA, but has been shown to maintain lean muscle mass whilst dieting.

In order to gain  muscle and strength you should aim to eat 2g per Kg of Body Weight.

Example 1;  

A female weighing 60Kg looking to lose body fat will require;

60Kg x 1.6g/Kg = 96g Protein per day.

Example 2;

A male weighing 60Kg looking to gain strength and increase muscle will require;

60Kg x 2g/Kg = 120g Protein per day

3)  Try to eat protein at each meal.   

4)  Aim to eat protein at regular intervals through the day.

Using our 60Kg female example eating 4 times per day;

96g Protein/day split into 4 meals =  24g Protein per meal.

5) Focus on eating protein from Whole-food sources, try to avoid becoming dependant upon too much Supplemental Protein. 

6)  Avoid cooking animal proteins at high temperatures as this can lead to the production of cancer causing compounds.  Ideally cook at low to moderate temperatures.

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Which Diet is Best?

Which diets have you tried?

What Success?

Keto, Atkins, Slimming World, High Protein, 5:2, Low Carb, IIFYM, Low Fat, Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Vegetarian…

There are so many diets out there, which ones work, which don’t?

The answer to both questions is ALL OF THEM.

I know, thats no help at all…Sorry!

Let’s look at each of them individually and the impact of how they affect you and I-the non athlete.

Low Carb, Atkins, Keto, High Protein.

I have banded these together as they are all following the same principle to achieve fat loss.

The principle of all these diets is to increase Protein (potentially up to 1.5g/Lb bodyweight), whilst simultaneously dramatically lowering Carbohydrate intake to below 30g.  This would mean Carbs are coming pretty much from Veggies, most fruit would take you over 30g allowance.

From experience both for myself and from clients whom have tried it, it works very well where I have seen an average weight loss of 5-7Lb in just the first week!!!  

Whilst that sounds great, taking your carbs down to zero takes both meal planning and patience. A lot of people find going very low Carb a very uncomfortable experience.

I would recommend that should you use it I have found that using the system for 7-21 days would create some great weight loss.

Gluten Free, Diary Free, Wheat Free

Not necessarily a diet per se, but it is a strategy many people employ.  These have been shown to have some effect on weight loss but on a very individual level.  Any potential weight loss would be based upon how much of a particular food you remove from a diet, i.e. removing bread from your diet if you eat toast at breakfast followed by a sandwich at lunch.

I would suggest that these diets only be employed on the recommendation of a nutritional or medical professional.

5:2

The 5:2 diet uses a calorie counting system by which for 5 days you eat 2000Kcal and for the remaining 2 days of the week eat just 500Kcal each day.

The principle is that overall you have eaten 11000Kcal across the week, meaning a daily average of 1571Kcal.

Weight Loss Clubs

As an overview of them all, they will have guidelines that allow you to eat a range of foods but you have to manage your overall consumption of certain foods individually and as groups.  Some will use a traffic light system, points, or Sins system.

The beauty of these weight loss clubs is the element of community that they offer, they come with an inbuilt support system both in a group leader, providing education but also the other people in the club provide a support community for you.

IIFYM-If It Fits Your Macros

So this system takes a bit more work initially, first off you figure out your daily calorie intake.  You can also calculate your Protein/ Carbohydrate / Fat intake based upon your bodyweight.

Once these calculations are made you can then eat the foods you want up to your individual calculated calorie intake.

So which is best? Is it any of these?

Do you need your own strategy?

The best will be the one that you can best adhere to for the long term.

I feel that most people go about the 'diet' game the wrong way.  I believe there is too much hype around diets achieving a rapid weight loss and marketed based upon the best result each diet has produced and not including an overall success rate, i.e. how many people have achieved their target weight loss and kept to it.

Surely if you do lose any weight you want it stay off?  So why follow a diet plan for 6 months, at which point you return your original diet that gave you your pre diet weight in the first place.

Of all the diets listed above in my experience the most sustainable diet is the IIFYM.  This works long term because you can eat the foods you like and just have to control the amounts.  The concept does not lend itself to demonising any foods or food groups so nothing is off limits, providing there is no individual medical condition.

To get you started there are some great calorie counters out there such as www.myfitnesspal.com or www.iifym.com

If you do work out your calorie intake and breakdown, why not share your stats here on the Darren Carroll-PT Facebook page and ask any questions if you are unsure of anything.

Otherwise share what diet works for you and an insight into why you think it could help others.

Eat well,

Darren.

All about that Bass- A guide to Glute training

I consider Glute (bum)training an essential body part to merit a significant degree of attention in your training for 2 reasons;

1)The Gluteus Maximus is the largest individual muscle in your body, for me that implies it should be a strong muscle.

2)A trained Bum looks awesome.

The Gluteals are a big muscle but what do they do?  Firstly they extend the hip, that is they bring the upper leg back and in line (and beyond) with the spine. They also perform 'External rotation of the Hip', simply put-turn the leg out at the hip.

Looking at the Gluteals as part of the bigger picture, the Glutes play a huge role in human function-or they should at least.

From experience I have seen many people with Glutes that function poorly with regards to people not being able to activate, contract and make them work.  As a result of the modern world where many of us spend time sat at desks, in the car, in front of the TV has seen people's Glutes becoming less utilised from an early age.

This is a real shame as the results I see is people losing good posture as well as the growing inability of people to perform basic human functions such as a squat or deadlift.

Don't worry all is not lost, the Glutes can be recovered and can be built stronger and better.  You can enjoy the benefits of improved posture, improved fitness performance that being squats or running and of course a good looking butt that doesn't droop down to the back of your knees.

Start by warming up on a Step Machine to get the Glutes warm and working followed by one of these workouts;

Workout A

A1:Deep Sumo Squat 4 x 6  4-0-1-0

superset with

A2:Stiff Leg Deadlifts 4 x 12. 3-1-2-1

Workout B

A:Hip Thrusters 4 x 8  4-0-X-0

B1:Cable Kickback 3 x 12  3-1-3-1

Superset with 

B2:Hip Thrust Lunge 3 x 8  2-1-X-1

Perform each of these 2 Glute workouts once per workout.

See the exercises here;

Train Hard,

Darren.

What can we learn from our kids/The musings of a Father

I am fortunate enough to be working part time right now, and I have been part time for nearly 4 years previous to that.  The reason for this is not laziness but to twice have the opportunity to be a dad to my daughters.

Having that time with them both and the chance to observe their behaviour and daily schedules reminds me of the lessons I as a trainer share with my clients and hope they act on.

Here's a couple;

Sleep 

Man, I dislike Friday mornings.  The thought of getting up early, getting the girls up, dressed, fed and out the door is the thing I dislike most about my week.  Jeez they are grumpy, cranky and mega irritable by the time Friday comes around.  To be fair by Friday, my short fuse is even shorter which certainly does help.

At Christmas my wife and I attended my daughters school Nativity. All the parents were sat down and the kids all came out 1 class at a time and I was shocked..  Every-and I mean every kid that stood in front of us had big dark bags under there eyes, holy hell these kids are aged just 4-11!  They looked like they had come off a run of night shifts, what the fuck!

I imagine these kids are getting plenty of sleep, I know my 2 get a minimum 10hrs each night yet wake up tired.  How much sleep do you get? Are you getting the recommended 8Hours, and what quality is that?  How can you expect to function anywhere near your optimal if your not getting this most basic and fundamental acts of our subconscious functions.

Eating

My kids can eat, it is at the same time both impressive yet horrifying how much they can put away at a single sitting. Provide them the opportunity to graze between meals and they can keep that going up to meal time.

Interestingly it is the foods they pick. My kids love fruit to the point at which we have to stop them eating too much, otherwise nasty nappies-parents you know what I'm talking about right?

A study was done(which I'm afraid I cannot reference as I just don't know), in this study a table was set with an array of foods, all the major food groups with good and bad foods. Kids were left in the room and helped themselves to whatever they wanted.  By the end of the day the kids had eaten a balanced diet of sufficient calories with no outside encouragement.  Where did we as grown adults lose this ability, or, did we have it and gain the ability of greed?

Running

Watching kids run is an interesting one. Have you noticed kids don't jog or pace themselves, they are either walking or running, and when running they go full pelt nothing else.  My personal belief and practice is to do sprints as a form of fat loss over endurance running or jogging and watching kids reinforces that for me.

Squatting

As a trainer the movement of Squatting is a great tool to use as an exercise for people wanting to lose fat/gain muscle/be stronger.  Often I see people struggling to do this most fundamental of movements.  It is an ability we have always had as a species, envisage cavemen huddled squatted down round a fire.

Watch kids squat to pick things up, textbook form each and every time, straight spine, head forward, feet flat and they don't groan on the way back up!

These are simple fundamental things that we encourage/allow our kids to do, why would we stop those things? Where did we lose them and what can we do to get them back?

Please I implore you to ensure your kids keep these behaviours into their adulthood otherwise our kids health and Well being is being diminished from an early age.

Be healthy, set the example and take a nap.

What I'm eating June 2014

What I'm Eating June 2014

I am often asked what I eat, at all times I am in one sort eating strategy or another.

Currently the thing that is working for me is 'Carb Back Loading' a protocol developed by Dr John Keifer.   The principle of CBL is to eat Proteins and fats before training, ideally training is 5-7PM.

After training now is the opportunity to eat Protein with Carbohydrates which will be utilised to replenish energy stores in the muscle with reduced likelihood of going to fat stores.

There is still lots of people questioning the science behind the strategy (plus Haters gotta Hate, and give themselves a feeling of superiority)but in a nutshell here it goes:

Firstly, research suggests that in the morning after sleep, the body is in a state of sourcing fuel primarily from your fat stores.  The intake of carbohydrates will blunt the fat burning and the body will utilise stored carbohydrates as they are a more readily available fuel source.

Naturally most of us will want to remain in a higher fat burning state so prolonging the intake of carbs will be a good thing.

Secondly, because there is likely hood you will still have a large portion of your daily calories available for after training, you can enjoy some more dietary freedoms.  Dr John Keifer initially was saying you could enjoy a couple of doughnuts the first hour after training.

Go careful here, some people got a bit over zealous and were looking to polish off a box of Krispy Kreme after every workout, not good!  Dr Keifer did edit the book as so many people were taking the piss, plus the health implications were being overlooked(a common feature of many diets-that's another blog).

The key reason for me using CBL at this time is it really nicely fits into my lifestyle.  Work through the day, train,spend the evening eating that's a good fit for me.

What I think is going to be the more interesting part for people is what am I eating when I'm in the no carb phase if the day.  When I talk to people about keeping carbs out of there first 2-3 meals they freak at the though of no carbs.

Really, is no carbs that scary! No your just that frickin lazy you can't be bothered to figure out some different meals high in fat and contain low calorie foods.  And let's be honest some people cannot be bothered to discipline themselves and go without for a few hours because any form of hardship is a lifelong crisis. And relax Darren...rant over.

Anyway some of the meals I eat;

Steak with spinach, kale, spring greens followed by Avocado
Lots of protein, lots of greens so tons of nutrients and low calorie and some healthy fats in the avocado.  This is a great meal as it can leave you feeling full for hours and fuel you for longer.

Chicken Salad
Fairly straight forward, I will often drop some nuts or seeds into this to add those healthy fats in.

Double Cream, Frozen berries & Chocolate Protein Powder.
This is very much a treat, it does have berries which contain carbs but very few so negligible and of course I favour chocolate protein

This is very little of what I do, but it really is easy to eat carb free meals that can be filling to eat and sustain the body well.

For further ideas look at some of the Paleo books/Apps that will have some carb free recipes within them.