Sunday Dinner # 2

It's that time of the week again when I fill you in on what's been happening with Holistic Foundations and The Lower Blue Mountains in general :)

As you should be aware, last week Myself, Pete and Steve launched our SUNDAY DINNERS!

What a turn out we got! I was so impressed with EVERYONE'S commitment. We had at least one organic, fresh, locally sourced and a raw dish. We had such a great turn out that it was clear to us that this was something that we could do on a fortnightly basis.

The location changed to the river, but the energy, commitment and the enthusiasm still showed up in force. We had some new faces and all the old regulars. I don't think the day could have been better. The sun was out and nature was in full force letting us know that we are well and truly in spring!

We will be running this event every fortnight from here on in with the next event falling on the 10th October.



Everyone is welcome. Myself, Pete and Steve are trying to create a healthy, happy community who support local farmers doing it right by the soil, humanity and the environment. Come join us when ever you can and join in with a bunch of fun people who care about their health.

Look forward to seeing you one Sunday soon! :)

Holistic Foundations Presents - Sunday Dinner - Converstaion & Nourishing Food

Hey everyone,

Last week was a MASSIVE success. (thanks to all of you!)

Over 15 people turned up and pretty much everyone prepared something for us to share that was organic, raw, fresh and locally sourced.

Keeping the energy flowing, myself, Pete and Steve have decided that we would like to hold this event this coming Sunday. Then every fortnight thereafter, because of it's success at creating healthy communities.

If this is the first you have heard about it, then I have left the event description that I wrote up last week for you to read over at the bottom.

If this will be your 2nd week attending, then we look forward to seeing what you come up with this week. You all did so awesome last week. Hopefully, you are now a wear of a lot of the benefits of locally sourced organic food. Not only on our health, but on our planet as well and will use more of it this week.

--------------------

The idea and concept is to get everyone involved in cooking with locally sourced, fresh, organic ingredients to help us nourish our bodies and become healthy. While connecting as a community and bonding over food and conversation!

Don't worry if you can not get organic, fresh or local food. Just bring along a dish this week and the following week try to replace an ingredient each time we meet. Ultimately we all will be able to hit the requirements of a wholesome nourishing meal!

You can make an entrée, a main meal or a dessert. Just so long as you bring enough to share.

If you are not confident in the kitchen just yet. Still come along and ask questions and learn about how other people were able to make the food that they made. Then have a go yourself the following week.

Bring the kids and the family. This will be a fortnightly event for all of Spring and Summer.

Let me know if you're coming and what you might be making.



Recap:

Fresh
Local
Organic
Slow cooked, fermented, sprouted or raw.
Enough to share
Cooked with love (haha)

See you Sunday! :)

Nourishing Food - A Few Simple Recipies!

You want to eat something, but you’re not sure what?

You have goals that you want to achieve, but making the right choice is sometimes hard.

Instead of racing for that sugar hit and feeling guilty, think of eating something that will last you a little longer, give you a feeling of satiety, balance and best of all – is good for you.

Well you’re in luck. Below I have put together some fail safe recipes. Always have at least ONE of these in the fridge or on its way in the oven and you’ll never be without a nutritious meal.

If we leave it till it’s too late to do something about our hunger pangs then our choices extraordinarily decrease. Why leave it to chance? With the help of these recipes you will have food on hand to help you through the tough times. You’ll also notice there are minimal carbs in these recipes. This follows on from my previous blogs that we need to source our energy from fat and protein, not so much from carbohydrates. All part of healthy living.

Snacks:



1. Organic cheese. Made from good culture! You can buy some or make it yourself from separated milk (REAL milk).

• Weigh up around 50g – 100g for a little snack on the run.


2. Raw Eggs. These amazing things, in my opinion, could be the best, most valuable thing in my fridge. You will never enter my kitchen and ask, “Do you have any eggs?” Eggs are an amazing source of Vitamins A, D, E and K!


• 2 eggs
• 50g Blueberries

Pop your eggs into a blender with 50g of blueberries and whiz them up. Short sharp pulse just enough to wiz up the berries. Enjoy!



Nourishing food:



Raw Beef Tartare*

Carbohydrates Calories
1 kg Raw Beef Chuck Finely Minced 1800 Calories
1 Medium Spanish Onion finely diced 4.6 30 Calories
2 Medium Lemons, juiced 4.5 68 Calories
2 Birds eye Chili's
1 Teaspoon Salt
1 Teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
5 Tablespoons Olive oil 603 Calories
10 Cos lettuce leaves
1 bunch of fresh basil, coriander and/or mint

1. Put all the ingredients except for Olive Oil in a Pyrex tray and kneed until mixed thoroughly.

2. Seal with olive oil.

3. Leave to marinate in refrigerator for min. 2 hours.

4. Scoop 3 big tablespoons into lettuce leaves and put chopped herbs on top and serve.

Total 1200g contains 9g Carbs and 2051 Calories
200g serve contains 1.5g Carbs and 416 Calories



Raw Beef Carpaccio*

1 Kg Beef Sirloin (Get the sirloin in one piece) 2250 Calories
2 Medium Lemons, Juiced 2.5 68 Calories
5 Tablespoons Olive oil 603 Calories
Fresh Parsley, finely chopped
Salt and Pepper to taste

1. Place Sirloin in freezer for 1 hr. This makes it easier to cut.

2. Cut the Sirloin as thinly as possible. 2-3mm is best

3. Cover beef with Lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper and garnish with parsley

4. Ready to serve immediately

1100g Serve contains 2.5g Carbs and 2921 Calories
220g Serve contains 0.5g Carbs and 584 Calories

Slow Roast Chicken*

1 Pasture Raised Chicken 1900cal ave for 1kg meat
1 Medium Lemon 1.25 34 Calories
1 Tablespoons Dried Organic Thyme
1 Teaspoon Sea Salt
1 Teaspoon Ground Pepper

1. Stuff Chicken with the lemon, a pinch of thyme and a pinch of salt and pepper

2. Coat the chicken with remaining herbs, salt and pepper

3. Place Chicken in a cast iron pot with the lid on at 90° for 4 hrs.

4. Baste the chicken with its juices

5. Take the lid off and cook for another 20-30 mins

Total 1100g contains 1.25g Carbs and 1934 Calories
200g serve contains 0.2 Carbs and 352 Calories



Slow Roast Lamb Leg or Shoulder*

1.2 Kg Lamb Shoulder or Leg, on the bone, untrimmed
2556 Cal shoulder 2244 Cal leg
2 Cloves Fresh Garlic, peeled, cut into fine spears 0.7g carb 17.5 Calories
Fresh Rosemary
Salt and Pepper to taste
200g Butter 1.4g Carb Calories

1. Pierce Lamb and insert spears of garlic

2. Mash herbs, salt and pepper and butter together using your hands and coat the lamb.

3. Place it into your cast iron pot and cook at 80° for 4-6 hrs with the lid on.

4. Remove the lid for the last 30mins to brown the finish or you can cook the whole way with the lid off. Leaving the lid on allows for moisture to be retained

5. Leave to rest for 10 minutes and then serve
Total 1415g contains 2.1g Carbs and 4013 (Shoulder) or 3701 (leg) Calories
200g serve contains 0.6g Carbs and 573.2 Calories (Shoulder) or 528.7 (Leg)

Avocado Salad*

10 Cos lettuce leaves, washed, dried and cut into 2 cm strips 130g 2.3 24.7
1 Medium Ripe avocado, peel and seed removed, cut into strips 190g 1.14 387
1 Small Cucumber, Sliced finely 120g 1.5 14.4
1 Medium Ripe Tomato, Diced 100g 2.4 18
1 Small Lemon juiced 100g 1.8 27
3 Tablespoons of Olive oil 362
Salt and Pepper to taste

1. Mix lettuce, avocado, cucumber and tomato in a salad bowl.

2. In a small jar mix olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper and shake.

3. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss

Total 615g contains 9g Carbs and 833 Calories
115g serve has 1.5g Carbs and 138 Calories


Chocolate Coconut Smoothie*

1 Virgin coconut 14.4 117.4
2 Eggs 0.3 162
10g Raw Cacao 6.3 49
10g Coconut oil 88
Stevia 1/8 teaspoon


1. Put all the ingredients in a blender and blend on high for 30 seconds

*Always put the coconut oil in just before you blend so it doesn't turn solid in the cold milk. During the winter months you may have to melt it on a gentle heat before you put it in.

*On carb days you can use honey instead of stevia and add fresh &/or frozen banana

1x 400ml serve has 21 Carbs and 416.4 Calories

To bring carbs down & make caffeine free substitute the Cacao for 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon. This way the smoothie can be used in the afternoon & during the seasonal cleanse.

Blue Berry Yoghurt Smoothie*

250ml Kefir or Paris Creek Yoghurt 12 210
2 eggs 0.3 162
50g Blueberries 5.65 26
1 Tablespoon Coconut oil 88
1/2 Teaspoon Fresh Cinnamon
Stevia 1/8 teaspoon

1. Put all the ingredients in a blender and blend on high for 30 seconds

2. Serve in cup with a sprinkle of fresh Cinnamon on top

*Always put the coconut oil in just before you blend so it doesn't turn solid in the cold milk. During the winter months you may have to melt it on a gentle heat before you put it in.

*On Carb days use more berries
1x 400ml serve has 17.95 Carbs and 486 Calories
To reduce carbs, cut berries. Still makes a delicious cinnamon yoghurt smoothie
Calorie & Carb% Referenced from Food Standards Australia New Zealand


OOE*

The Cost Of Healthy Eating. Cheaper Than Chips!!

It should be everyone’s right to eat whole, organic foods and buy the best quality food you can buy but a lot of people are put off because they think organic or grass fed means $$$. Unfortunately, this is perpetuated by the big chains who operate on very small margins (Woolies run a 3% profit margin. Fact) and make it seem – by advertising their low low prices – that healthy food is out of reach of the average person. Not necessarily so.

I decided to break down my own shopping budget for the week so that you can see that eating healthy is not a break-the-budget matter.

Here’s what I consume weekly (cooking for my girlfriend and myself):

$50 - Eggs (If you know me, you know I consume a lot of eggs)
$90 - Meat (Buy roasts, they last a lot longer than single serves)
$21 - Milk (6 litres a week)
$16.90 - Cheese (A great healthy snack to enjoy between meals or after training)
$15 - Blueberries (can’t live without them in my yummy shakes!)
$8 - Coconuts (Food of LIFE. Do you have the food of life in your house?)
$15 - Fruit and Veg (added flavour and texture to some meals)

---------------------
$215.90 - Total (107.95 Each)

Now, the above list is pretty much starting from scratch. Once you have these things, it’s a simple matter of topping them up each week as you consume. I put that list up to show you what it would cost to go and buy everything you'd need to set yourself up with good food in the house so that you can make something that is fresh and healthy every meal!

My bills thereafter would almost be between 1/4 to 1/2 less, every other week.

Broken down, it looks like this:

I spend $108 per week divided by 7 days in the week = 15.42 per day.
I eat close to 6 meals almost everyday so daily price (15.42) divided by each meal = $2.57 per meal!

$2.57 a meal on average - So realistically, even if you double the $108 to $216pw it would still be CHEAPER than chips, pardon the pun ($5.17 per meal).





These costs are based on the foods I'm buying being organically raised or grown. For example the meats are grass fed and finished, hens are 100% free range, and fruit and vegies are from organic sources. The benefits include:


• Supporting myself with good nourishing food.
• Supporting the environment.
• Supporting humanity and rewarding farmers for doing things right by the soil.


There’s another benefit but I have to get on my soapbox for this one. When you buy from big corporations and big chain supermarkets you help to secure their dominance on our food industry and support poor quality food and the destruction of our environment. [You may even notice that lately the big guys are putting ‘Grass fed, grass finished’ on some of their labels in an effort to corner the rising tide of people looking for better quality.

Sure, you might pay a couple of dollars less than me but look at my shopping list. It’s not that much to eat high quality food is it? The expression ‘you are what you eat’ is spot on so knowing you’re eating 100% organic food from a reliable source gives you piece of mind that you’re as healthy as you possibly can be. Can you put your hand on your heart and say unequivocally that you know where the big guys’ meat and veg is sourced?

We need to understand that by paying for goods we are voting to have MORE of whatever it is we're buying in our lives. I'm comfortable knowing that my income goes to people who are doing the right thing and creating healthy wholesome foods.

Bon Appétit and use the big guys to buy nappies, soap and tissues. (Also be mindful that you can get sustainable options for these products to)


Health & Chi

Shane Richards

(Thanks to Alex Smith for his editorial skills!)

The Weight Loss & Gain Pin Code! Unlock Your Bodys Secret Passcode!

I had a very interesting question today!

How many calories should I consume daily to either lose weight or gain weight?

Awesome Question!! Something that I’m sure all of us has asked ourselves.
Hopefully, I can shed some light on this topic.

As I’m sure you are very aware, all calories were NOT created equal. Calories from fat, protein and carbohydrates - when being broken down by our bodies - behave VERY differently inside of us.

As a broad guide, use these numbers as a reference point:
Carbs = 4 cals per Gram
Protein = 4 cals per gram
Fat = 9 cals per gram
Alcohol = 7 cals per gram

As you know, I’m by no means a Nutritionist and I encourage all of you to source a GOOD naturopath or nutritionist to help you find what works for you and your body.


With that being said, I will give you a look inside what I try to do daily to hopefully give you a better understanding!

Let's get started:

First we must assess what our total ACTIVE TISSUE (AT) is. We don’t want whole weight; we want to subtract our body fat from our total weight to establish active tissue weight. It's easy to find out.

We can do one of two things.

1. Get a Dual Energy X_Ray Absorptiometry (DEXA) body scan. This is the best way to find out as it won’t leave you guessing. This is a relatively inexpensive procedure and can cost as little as $60. Check out http://www.bodycomposition.com.au/index.php?pageid=2 . As an added bonus, the DEXA scan also supplies you with your Bone Mineral Content (BMC). The BMC is useful to know as it can be an early warning sign of osteoporosis if you come back with a low BMC. The mineral content of your bones is extremely important as this is your body’s BANK account so to speak which we will draw from as we get older.

2. Body fat percentage test. If you have some Tanita scales you can use them to find your overall body fat percentage. Most of these scales require you avoid eating for 4 hours before hand and limit water intake 30mins before you stand on the scales. This will help to get a more accurate result.

Once we have our active tissue mass we need to work out our Resting Metabolic Rate. Using the Cunningham formula below, I worked out my RMR as follows:

64kg (my AT, NOT my overall weight) x 22 + 500 = 1908cal

This is the amount of energy expended while at rest in a neutrally temperate environment. In other words, this is what my body needs EVERYDAY just to function all of my organs, muscles and glands, my breathing, my heart beat, my core temp... everything!


This is what my body needs if I DON'T MOVE, everyday!!!!! If I was to lay on a bed without doing anything, I would burn 1908cal per day until I waste away.

Take a moment to think about that for a second...... ready to move on? If you know your AT, go ahead and work out your RMR.

Now that we know what we burn doing nothing, we can find out how much we burn in our active, daily lives. Because our lifestyles predominantly dictate our activity levels, we will all have a different coefficient (activity factor). Check out the table below for where you sit. We can then use this table to work out our activity levels and multiply our RMR by the activity factor that matches our activity levels.

Activity | | Factor Category | | Category description |

1.25 | Sedentary | | Little or minimal exercise |

1.50 | Moderate |Training 2 -3 times per week |

1.75 |High | |4 hard workouts plus some activity on rest days |



Getting the hang of it?? :)

So check out my numbers below using the formula and the coefficient:

64kg (AT) x 22 + 500= 1908 cal (RMR) x 1.75 (coefficient) = 3339 cals.

That might seem a lot to take in but when you simplify it like that, pretty easy hey? Even for a Personal Trainer.


If we eat LESS then this, our body will USE our muscle (AT) to get an insulin spike when it has no energy or it’s running low, in turn, decreasing our metabolic rate and making it harder to burn body fat because muscle is more metabolically active then fat tissue. So, in other words it just needs more energy than body fat everyday to stay on our bodies.

Moving on.......

Now that we know “our numbers” we need to work out what to do with them. For maintenance purposes, our caloric intake will remain fairly close to If you wanted to lose some kg’s, these must be done incrementally otherwise you will lose muscle, not fat, and inevitably put it back on shortly thereafter. I’ve done the math for you. Check the numbers below:


To lose:
250g per week = 321cals LESS per day. 3339 calories - 321 = 3018
500g per week = 642cals less per week. 3339 calories - 642 = 2697


So what I’m saying is this:


• We can see if we're feeding our bodies enough to keep it healthy and to maintain our ACTIVE tissue and bone mineral content.

• We can see if we are meeting our daily requirements to support movement, active tissue (muscle) growth.

• We can work out how many calories less we need to consume to get a reduction of 250, 500g of fat per week. This is key because when a lot of people lose weight they lose water and muscle which they will put back on at some point.

• We can work out how many calories more we need to consume to get an increase of 250, 500g of weight per week. This is key because when a lot of people put on weight they add a lot of fat mass which is not ideal. In turn people go through a cycle of bulking and starvation which by what you can see, is also not ideal.


I hope this helps and you become slimmer, fitter, more educated and more energetic!


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Additional Reading: Rules of engagement found in the blogs below this one.

This will give you the ‘rules’ of which to go by to make this journey a successful one. Knowing the numbers is only HALF the equation. You need the numbers + Source and Process of food to = Success.

Keep smiling!

Health & Chi
Shane Richards

Add your equations, success stories, a friendly hello or experiences to comments below! I look forward to reading them! :)