We’re excited to announce that our very own Fadi Malouf is going to appear in the next Save The Bros video! If you haven’t seen the first one, check it out below and prepare to be warned about the potential collapse of the entire bro nation.
What is Save The Bros, you ask? It’s an initiative by Organic Valley to encourage all the gym rats of the world to stop pumping their bodies with “synthetic junk.” They make a protein shake called Organic Fuel that is made with all natural ingredients – including 26 grams of high-quality protein. Good stuff.
So check out the video below for a good laugh. And if you’re a bro, take a minute to think about the toxins you may be putting in your body each time you chug a protein shake and check our Organic Fuel – if not for you, for the fate of bro nation as we know it.
Once again I sit here listening to music getting into the mindset of writing my thoughts, when a particular song comes to mind. Home by Phillip Phillips. In this song the lyrics are “Settle down, it’ll all be clear. Don’t pay no mind to the demons. They fill you with fear. The trouble it might drag you down. If you get lost, you can always be found. Just know you’re not alone. Cause I’m gonna make this place your home. “
I have been doing the Body By Fadi Fast Track program now for an incredible 9 months. In those 9 months my coach Fadi Malouf has has taken me from a world of the unknown to a world of Health Nutrition and Fitness and made me feel very much at home. I have been sober for nine months now. Free of smoking for three months. I am so far from that person I was just 9 short months ago.
Back in September if someone told me I would be having a complete home gym in my home I would have said that would be awesome. But 9 months ago if someone told me I would be at a gym working along side the same people who scared me, I would have assumed you were drinking heavily at that moment. But that is exactly what I am doing. When I wrote a blog here 6 months ago I was so afraid of walking into a gym. I joined one and after several “I can do this” to myself. I Love it. Using the Virtual Trainer is fun and easy. Yep! Easy!!!! I track my progress with every exercise Fadi assigns. This virtual trainer is one cool phone app.
Fadi has taken this once under achiever in life and shown through this amazing Body By Fadi Fast Track program. Anything is possible. Goals can be and will be met. I started this program weighing in at 129 lbs. with a goal of making it to 150lbs with his nutritional guidance I achieved that. Eating healthy clean foods. No fast foods, no junk foods, no chips or sodas or anything processed. I struggled along the way but never once gave up. I was going to get there. Now that I am there I still have high goals to reach.
One of my biggest enemies was myself, my self-esteem, my self-worth, always targets by “haters” trying to burst my bubble along the way. Fadi, the big brother type made sure I never lost belief in myself, by keeping me motivated with Facebook posts. His own words of encouragement and making sure no matter what was happening, no matter how hard things were, I was never going to be left alone to lose sight of the “big picture.”
Along with helping me understand fitness and nutrition, Fadi has shown me a path I of all people never saw coming. The want to help others who were in the same boat as I am (or was at some point) in. I am now enrolled in getting my sports nutrition certification. To teach others what I was taught. Simply eating right is the ONE factor (of many) you can control in staying healthy and fit. It’s all a matter of knowing whats going in your body. If you can’t pronounce the ingredients there’s a pretty good chance your body won’t make due with it. I hope to be working along side Fadi after this process is done.
So you see now why this Song “Home” is so fitting to me and the Body By Fadi Fast Track Program. This Amazing man has shown me a home that I was once afraid of. A lifestyle to which I have become so accustomed to. He has made me know I have to fight off the demons of the way I was. All I have to do is look forward and know I have come such a long way and fought through so much. His words that’s started it all ” You can go back to the way you were, or move forward and never look back,” is still standing strong in my mind.
One last thing. If a year long program seems a bit long. Trust me in 9 months from now you’ll be saying “Dang only 3 months left but I am having too much fun”
Pears are in season! They are sweet, delicious and richly flavored pears offer the crunchiness of apples yet are as juicy as peaches and nectarines.
Pears are packed with health benefiting nutrients such as dietary fiber, anti-oxidants, minerals and vitamins, which are necessary for optimum health.
Pears are a good source of dietary fiber and regular eating of this fruit may offer protection against colon cancer. Most of the fiber in them is non soluble polysaccharide (NSP), which functions as a good bulk laxative in the gut. Additionally, the gritty fiber content binds to cancer-causing toxins and chemicals in the colon, protecting its mucous membrane from contact with these compounds.
In addition, pear fruit is one of the very low calorie fruits, provides 58 calories per 100g. Just a few sections a day in the diet can bring significant reduction in weight and blood LDL cholesterol levels.
They contain good quantities of vitamin C. Fresh fruits provide about 7% of RDA per 100 g.
They are moderate sources of antioxidant flavonoids phyto-nutrients such as beta-carotene, lutein and zea-xanthin. These compounds, along with vitamin C and A, help the body protected from harmful free radicals.
The fruit is a good source of minerals such as copper, iron, potassium, manganese and magnesium as well as B-complex vitamins such as folates, riboflavin and pyridoxine (vitamin B-6).
Although not well documented, pears are among the least allergenic of all fruits and are therefore recommended by health practitioners as a safe alternative in the preparation of food products for allergy sufferers.
Since several of the vitamins and minerals are concentrated in significant quantities just underneath the skin, pears should be eaten as a whole along with its skin to get maximum benefits.
Here is a delicious recipe for a low-fat Pear and Spinach Salad.
This is a nice fall salad that makes use of wonderfully fragrant ripe pears. The hardest thing about making this pear and spinach salad is not eating the pears ahead of time. Feel free to add some slivered red onion or a half cup of sliced mushrooms or a tablespoon of crumbled feta cheese to this delicious salad to contrast the sweetness of the pears, raisins or cranberries.
Ingredients:
•1 10 ounce package baby spinach
•3 ripe Bartlett pears, peeled, cored and sliced
•1/2 cup raisins or dried cranberries
•1/4 cup chopped walnuts
•2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil
•3 tbsp white wine vinegar
•1 tbsp lemon juice
•Pinch of Himalayan salt (optional)
Preparation:
Wash and dry spinach and place in large bowl with pear slices. Sprinkle raisins and walnuts on top. Whisk oil, vinegar, lemon and salt and drizzle over salad.
Serves 4-6
Per Serving: Calories 164, Calories from Fat 46, Total Fat 5.2g (sat 0.5g), Cholesterol 0mg, Sodium 39mg, Carbohydrate 26.6g, Fiber 3.8g, Protein 2.8g
Have you noticed a theme yet? If its quick and easy and if it can be turned into a salad, I’m all over it. Another salad creation here that’s perfect for summertime. And this is probably the easiest one yet, because some of the ingredients (dare I say it?) are canned. I don’t normally use canned ingredients, but sometimes you’re just in a hurry and its better than nothing (also better than falling prey to a fast food place). I just look for the no sodium/low sodium version of whatever it is I need. A lot of canned items have a ton of added salt. Why let someone else determine how you season your food? If its beans, I rinse really well before using. Enough about that, though, here’s your dinner for tonight and get ready for lots of pictures.
Ingredients:
1 medium tomato, chopped
5 mini cucumbers (or 1 regular), sliced
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 medium avocado, chopped
1/2 of a small red onion, diced
1 container of low sodium albacore tuna
1 can of garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1 tsp. evoo
1 tsp. balsamic vinegar
dash of black pepper
1/4 c. fresh cilantro, chopped
Preparation:
In a bowl, mix together tomatoes, cucumber, red bell pepper, avocado, and red onion.
Add the tuna and garbanzo beans. Stir to combine. Then drizzle with evoo and balsamic vinegar. Add pepper and toss to coat.
Finally, top with cilantro and you’re done! Enjoy!
Macros per one out of four servings: 233k cals, 9.3g fat (1.1g sat, .9g poly, 5g mono), 29.9g carbs (9.4g fiber, 5.5g sugar), 16g protein, 12.5mg cholesterol, 357.4mg sodium, 478.3mg potassium
