Fat Tuesday: My first grass-fed steak...

So last night was Fat Tuesday... for us Catholics that means Lent is just a day away and the time of fasting and sacrifice begins.  So what do we do?  We get fat on tuesday! :D   For this day, I treated myself to a big fat medium rare grass-fed steak, covered in a cabernet reduction and a side of sauteed goodness.

And here's the sauteed goodness.  Shrimp, grass-fed beef sausage (german style), 2 gloves of garlic (sliced), onions, bacon (diced), and some spinach leaves added right at the end to coat in all that bacony, garlicy, sausage goodness.

Then washed it all down with a glass of red wine.  Definitely a meal worthy of Fat Tuesday!

Primal Dinner! Fun with sweet potatoes and poblano peppers

Had a pretty awesome dinner tonight.. really had no idea what to make and had a bunch of random veggies and some leftovers... i knew i wanted sweet potatoes, but that was about the extent of it..   Here's what I ended up with:

 Roast zucchini, mashed sweet potatoes, and stuffed poblano peppers

Decided to finish off the peppers with a few globs of fresh mozzarella.

Pepper stuffing was a mixture of sauteed onions, garlic, green onions, cabbage, asparagus, red peppers, chicken, and wild salmon.  Was really good.  Mashed sweet taters are the norm.. butter, milk, sea salt, and pepper.

For dessert we had sliced bananas and sweet potatoes fried in coconut oil and sprinkled with cocoa powder, cinnamon, and a dash of salt.   Good stuff, and without any added sugar :D  Jenna was in love with them lol

Primal Footwear: Vibram Five Fingers Pt 2

Well,  I pulled the trigger on the VFF shoes.  I went with the KomodoSport model.  This model not only has the top strap, but also a Velcro strap around the back of the heel, so it really helps with people like me who have narrow heels, to get a more secure fit in the shoe.   For me it was between the komodosport and the Bikila.  After trying both on, the back heel strap won out and I walked out of Backwoods Adventures with my new pair of Vibrams :D

Here's some shots with the Ininji toe socks on

Tonight was my first workout with them on, and I must say it was pretty sweet.  I never felt so securely planted to the gym floor while doing my heavy lifting.  I did squats, Incline bench press, pullups, and a few other light exercises just to get a feel for the shoes.

I'll definitely be heeding the warning about easing into them.  After my hour of wearing them at the gym (about 40 minutes of actual workout) my knees were starting to get sore in a spot they never have before, just below the joint where the tendon connects down.  These shoes put you back into your natural posture that the typical padded cushy soles have changed.. so it takes some adjustment by the body.  At the time of typing this the soreness has gone away, so it was nothing serious.  I'll be ready to do some light "move slowly" activity tomorrow.  Probably taking the dog for a walk to my favorite fields where there's some old soccer goals i can climb around on :D

Primal Footwear: Vibram Five Fingers

I've been working out barefoot/socks a lot lately.  Especially on my leg and back days when I'm needing the most stability and driving force with my feet for exercises like squats, deadlifts, etc.  I feel a lot better and i've noticed my calves and feet getting stronger since i've done this.   The only issue here is, if any of the gym staff notice it, they get on me about it because they require shoes while in the weight room.  So I've resorted to keeping my laces loose and kicking them off on my sets and then putting them back on.  Needless to say, this gets really annoying and wastes time.

The last week or so, I've been hearing a lot about Vibram Five Fingers shoes.  These shoes are pretty awesome, and designed to simulate being barefoot while still giving you a little bit of protection.  Plus the gym staff couldn't say anything to me about not having shoes on.  Right now i'm leaning towards the KomodoSport model, which was new in 2011 and seem to offer the best of all the features I would need.

Here's the link to them:  http://www.vibramfivefingers.com/products/Five-Fingers-Komodo-Sport-Mens.htm

I've been watching a bunch of youtube video reviews on the different models.  If anyone reading has any input on these drop a comment.  I'd love to find a store to try some on at, but I may  just have to guess on size and order online.

Primal fuel: Eggplant pizzas!

This was another recipe i nabbed from http://www.marksdailyapple.com/10-primal-meals-in-15-minutes-or-less

Primal enchiladas.  Topped the eggplant slices with organic marinara sauce, pulled chicken, crispy bacon (nitrate free), garlic, fresh mozerella gobs, chopped artichoke hearts, sauteed kale, and onions. Here they are before going into the oven:

Here they are done and on my plate.  They were awesome!  I recommend letting them cool about 10 minutes, they taste a lot better after cooling a little.

Primal fuel: Enchiladas!

This meal was awesome!  Primal/Paleo compliant enchiladas, mmmm so good.

The tortilla shells were replaced with thin crepes made from organic cream and eggwhites (fresh from the farm).  Filling was grass-fed ground beef, onions and garlic fried up in coconut oil.  Sauce was made from olive oil, butter, tomato sauce, water, chili powder, cocoa powder, garlic powder, paprika, and a tiny bit of cornstarch (1 tsp just to help thicken).  Topped it with cheese (didn't get this from the farm) and onions.

Full recipe taken from http://www.marksdailyapple.com/10-primal-meals-in-15-minutes-or-less

Lunch Time!

Rotisserie chicken with sauteed kale and cabbage, and a little bit of chinese hotsauce in a lettuce wrap.  That's some kale and cabbage on the side too.  

Really good and easy lunch.  Nothing too inspiring, but it was my first time eating kale and I love it!