Chocolate Almond Banana Bread

Morning :)

Okay, so it's been a while since I've experimented in the kitchen! So here's what I made for my Saturday night #cheatclean treat :) :) It is DELISH!!!


Chocolate Almond Banana Bread :)

What you'll need:
- 1 Chocolate Chunk Quest Bar (chopped into small chunks)
- 6 eggs (6 whites, 2 yolks)
- 4 tbs of filtered water
- 100g of vanilla protein
- 1 tbs Cacao powder
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 2 medium bananas (mashed)
- 5 tbs flaked almonds

What you need to do:

  


1. Preheat your oven (Gas 3) + line your bread tin with paper
2. Sort your eggs out + add your water
3. Mix your egg mix with your protein + cacao + cinnamon + baking powder (if it's too thick add some more water, but this mix was good for me!)
4. Fold in your bananas, almonds + quest bar :)

5. Pour into your tin and in the oven for 40 mins
6. Let it cool, pop in fridge and enjoy :)

It's delicious with goo in the middle.....



Enjoy your Sunday,

Erica xx

Cross Fit... Yay or Nay?

Hellooooo,

Ok so CrossFit has gotten HUGE lately, and I felt it fitting to write my blog this week on CrossFit as we have just purchased an AWESOME 4 bay double sided crossfit rig for The Gym Howth!

CrossFit has some really brilliant ideas. It is a really social and team based form of training, and CrossFit athletes seem to have a great team mentality. They push each other hard…. Maybe sometimes a bit too hard. A major strength of CrossFit is that it helps people in the gym who might not like training alone.

Things I like about CrossFit:

1. They work their asses off!

2. They use the big lifts. Squats, Deads, Chins, Olympic lifts.

3. They eat well.

4. They don’t make excuses.

5. They have a huge focus on mobility work, stretching and foam rolling.

Some things that might be a problem for people doing CrossFit:

1. Technique can be quite bad. (This is not exclusive to CrossFit, there are bad coaches in every sport)

2. Exercises can be too advanced for the “athlete”.

3. Program design can be pretty bad also. I’ve seen videos online of people testing their 1RM Deadlift before moving onto 1RM Snatches. That’s just bad. Again, this is not exclusive to CrossFit.

Overall I think it is great. It has gotten a massive number of people up off their asses and taking an interest in their health. As with any sport, there is a likelihood of injury. But I do think that it suits the more advanced trainee.

I feel most people would find it far more beneficial to get Personal Training and proper coaching focusing on structural balance, good technique and workouts that are unique for what each individual is looking for. A good Personal Trainer will design a program that are tailored for YOU – this is the difference between people who train and get results and people who train and don’t get results.

Happy Training,
Erica xx

Have you gone up or down since January??

Well girls.... HOW are your progress reports coming along????

If you have a look at mine, you'll see only a very little change BUT in February I actually went UP!! Damn you February!! So to be down.... even if it's only slightly down... it's still down!! Plus, it shows I'm not lying to you and just saying I got results the whole time, because I AM HONEST!!

Small achievements over time, lead to a big achievement over the year!!

So, print off your one and have it so by next January you can see a big physical change!!!!

Also, I came across this really cool goal workout download on pinterest!!

So, I downloaded it so you guys can download it and pin it on your fridge to remind you to train!!!

USE IT!

Have another great training week! June is the next deadline for being below 15% for me... Whats your goal for June 2014?!

Erica xx

ps: I have been getting loads of emails from girls looking for some food/training advice, so if anyone else wants to send on some things, feel free to do so and I shall and get back to you as fast as possible!

pps: I ATTEMPTED to make healthy gluten free cookies.... with coconut flour, stevia and dark chocolate:

They were rotten!!! However, I will try again... and when I get tasty healthy cookies - you'll be the first to know about them :)

It's little chocolate balls of love

Here's a short one today girls :)

Since it is St. Patrick's weekend, I decided to make some healthy treats so the one I want to share with you!

Ingredients:
1 tbsp of cocoa
2 tbsp coconut segments (and keep for the end process)
3 tbsp of chopped almonds (toasted on the pan)
2 tbsp peanut butter
2 tbsp linseed crunch (a little bag of seeds that you can buy in aldi)
2 scoops of forever lite ultra chocolate protein
1 tbsp coconut oil (melted in the pan)


Method:
1. Throw all the dry ingredients into a bowl and mix around.
2. Add in the coconut oil and stir around.
3. Roll into little balls and roll in the coconut segments
4. Pop them into the fridge and eat when they slightly harden!

YUMMY YUMMY YUMMY

If you want to purchase the low carb/sugar tasty protein that I use for all my treats to #cheatclean, have a scoop around my online store here :)

Also, I post up more recipes on instagram, so if you want to see daily food tips, follow me @ericabrennanblog

Have a fantastic Paddy's weekend,
Erica xx

6 simple steps... lose fat instantly

Right,

Are you ready? Five things - food related - to do and you are guaranteed to start losing fat instantly...

1. Back away from the booze
I am aware that this can be a hard pill to swallow...

If you want to get shredded... you CANNOT drink alcohol.

However if you don't want to get shredded, but you do want to lose a bit of weight or body fat, then you still have to give it up. Drink destroys your ability to burn fat by inhibiting your growth hormone production. It really messes up your liver, which means you will struggle to detoxify your body. Therefore if alcohol is a big part of your life, you're destroying your ability to burn fat... which isn't a great situation to be in really, is it?!

So bye bye wine... And no, it doesn't matter if it is gin and slimline tonic... all types of alcohol will inhibit your fat burning fun. It's nothing to do with calories or "low fat" mixers.... it is all down to the disastrous effect it has on hormones in the body.


2. Stop eating margarines
All those tubs of margarine are a no-go. It's a simple change - move to real butter, organic butter or unsalted butter (ghee). Margarines are full of transfats which are highly highly dangerous!

So as a general rule... let's not put trans fats (everything that is processed) into your body, they're not good for you.

3. Stop eating processed food
Processed foods have been made in a factory and get transported to the supermarkets in boxes... really do you want to eat from dirty boxes.

Factory made food... well you don't need me to tell you that they're not good for you. Plus, MSG and chemicals don't help fat loss either... actually they inhibit it (plus MSG is awful for your body... you're body is a temple, don't put that crap in it!) MSG and Aspartame are some of our generations biggest, most dangerous inventions, and they are literally killing millions of people a year. A bit bleak, I know, but unfortunately that is the reality!


4. Start eating vegetables

You know they're good for you. Just eat them. Preferably steamed, not boiled, and as much orange and green veg as you can!

5. Stop eating the bold carbs
Bread, Pizza, Pasta, Rice (brown, occasionally)
You know they're bad for you... So stop eating them.
Better types of carbs would be Quinoa and Sweet Potato, but the timing is as important, preferably post workout when you're more insulin sensitive.

6. No more low-fat
Remember this: Low Fat = High Sugar

Sugar stores as fat in body and it sits on your hips! Avoid all the foods that say "low fat" on the label. They still taste delicious which means that lots of sugar and chemicals have been added to them so they still taste good. Ditch them. Eat less of the regular product.

Think about this: 
Our bodies are machines, they perform millions and millions of actions every second in our bodies. Now your body doesn't really care about those two kilos that you'd love to lose... if you consume a load of chemically processed foods with ridiculously high sugar. Your main priority is to excrete them. Therefore your body is not focusing on your weight loss regime. If you want to lose weight, help your body function properly so it can burn fat effectively, don't hinder it by eating the above foods.

Hope this helped, Erica xx

#healthieselfie

Hi,

So I spotted this idea on Instagram from Sweaty Betty (a fantastic company with a brilliant gym gear collection) and I thought it was pretty awesome!

#healthieselfie
So as you know "selfies" are everywhere (if you don't know, a "selfie" is a picture of you taking a photo of yourself) BUT I think that #healthieselfie is a much better idea!!

Here are some of mine (obviously if you're doing something revolved with fitness, you may need to get someone else to take your picture):

Why not Instagram me your #healthieselfie @ericabrennanblog

Chat soon,
Erica xx

LOSE FAT? PHASE TWO!

So, getting back to our BIG QUESTION?

HOW DO WE LOSE FAT??

Well like I said, there are two main simple rules! The first rule is to stop eating crap and the second is to;

TRAIN PROPERLY!!

You need to: 

1. Weight Train 

2. Do high intensity cardio intervals

3. Stop chatting and taking so much rest

So just to briefly expand on these bullet points. 

1. You need to WEIGHT TRAIN!

Why? Because you need to build muscle (no you will NOT get bulky - women do NOT produce enough testosterone to increase muscle dramatically!)this means that not only will your RMR (resting metabolic rate) be elevated but the amount of calories you burn during the 24 hour post workout will be much higher. 

(e.g. When you go for a run, you are burning calories while you are running, but as soon as you get in the front door, you've stopped. Compared to weight training where you are still burning post 24 hours after your workout. You do the maths!)

2. High Intensity Cardio Intervals will leave you butchered, which is how you want to feel after you have been training. If you're going to spend an hour in the gym, make it a beneficial one! It is fact that short intervals result in higher fat loss in relation to long aerobic programs. 

3. Stop taking 3-7 minutes of rest. Put your phone away, stop talking to other people. You need to have discipline when it comes to time keeping, otherwise you're wasting valuable fat loss time. Realistically, you are in charge of your workout (Yes a personal trainer will really help) but if your workout is "too easy" YOU'RE not pushing yourself hard enough. Yeah, we could all do 20 burpies over 10 minutes, try do them in 60 seconds, thats a different story altogether! 

I don't want to drag on, so over the next couple of weeks, I'm going to focus on fat loss tips and ways to speed up the process of burning fat. There are other factors like stress, sleep, supplements, program design etc. so stay tuned :)

COME ON GIRLS, 

Change your thinking, change your life

Good morning girls, 

Cold Autumn Sunday morning - love them :) 

So throughout the week, i'm going to be posting up all the best defences now for coming into the Winter months. We have a lots of different problems in Winter compared to Summer like;

1. Our immune system is what we need to hit to stay healthy.

2. Our skin, because it's going to react with the cold windy air. 

3. The Winter Blues can be a problem for some people (Seasonal Affected Disorder = SAD)

So i'm going to post my favourite supplements and little tips up throughout the week on that :)

For this morning though, I want to share with you this little clip. I just LOVE it. Like I want to cry every time I watch it because I feel so motivated and ambitious afterwards. I've actually started to watch it every night (for the past two weeks I have). I like going to bed feeling positive, feeling excited, feeling happy about my life and my future; this clip ticks all the boxes. 

In the past two weeks I've received LOTS of exciting news… Which i'm going to be announcing very soon. News in relation our gym #tfa The Fitness Agency. So watch this space because it IS very exciting!!!

Happy Sunday! 

And remember, the only person who is stopping you achieving ANYTHING that you want in life. Is you… So move out of your own way! 

Love Erica xx

Home-made Protein Balls

One thing I'd like to point out. I really love baking BUT if I bake, I eat everything... SO I don't bake.

So during the week, I did a little baking experiment which turned out GREAT :)

So I made little yummy protein balls.

Ingredients:
Forever Ultra Lite Aminotean Protein Shake (1.5 scoops)
Organic Peanut Butter (1 tablespoon)
Almond Milk (30 mls)
Organic Porridge Oats (1/2 mug)
Mixed Seeds (half a mug)
Dried fruit (small handful)
Flaked almonds (2-3 tablespoons)

 Method:
Put all the ingredients into a bowl
Mix together with a wooden spoon!
Make small little balls
Pop onto a tray and into the oven (Gas 4 (160 degrees))
Turn after 5 minutes and leave in the oven for another 5

They taste awesome and are a superb snack or breaki!!! Absolutely delish with a cup of herbal tea :)

Good morning girls :)

Okay as we all know water is a necessity to keep our bodies healthy BUT most people don't drink nearly enough!

You have got to drink water on its own, tea does NOT count. 

If you don't like water - get over it & drink it!

Here's some reasons;

- It helps to maintain healthy body weight by increasing metabolism and regulating appetite (yahoo)

- Water leads to increased energy levels. The most common cause of daytime fatigue is actually mild dehydration.

- Water leads to overall greater health by flushing out wastes and bacteria that can cause disease.

- Drinking adequate amounts of water can decrease the risk of certain types of cancers, including colon cancer, bladder cancer, and breast cancer.

- Water naturally moisturizes skin and ensures proper cellular formation underneath layers of skin to give it a healthy, glowing appearance.

- Water aids in the digestion process and prevents constipation.

- For a majority of sufferers, drinking water can significantly reduce joint and/or back pain.

- Water can prevent and alleviate headaches.

- Water is the primary mode of transportation for all nutrients in the body and is essential for proper circulation.

Oh and eh it is COMPLETELY essential to the human body’s survival (a person can live for about a month without food, but only about a week without water)

Eh in a nutshell... Drink more water!

(Bottled is better than tap & make sure that your bottles are BPA free... But that's for another day!!)

Spinning makes you sweat!

Spinning is awesome. 

Spinning is just an excellent workout! I would recommend spinning once or twice a week, it's great cardio workout and it'll leave you looking like a smiling tomato. Spinning is a sweaty session that you just feel amazing after! The music is pumping, your legs are moving so fast and every stress in your life just flies out the window!

Don't forget water and a sweat towel!

My fav aspects of spinning:

• A 45 minute spinning class burns around 500kcal - woo hoo
• If you keep good posture when spinning you'll give your abs a good session
• Spinning is low impact, which means no pressure on your knee's or joints!
• You can spin in Winter! 

Other joy of it: 

• When you pedal fast = you burn fat 
• When you pedal slow = you isolate your muscle group 
• Spinning focus' on your core muscles, thighs & bums!
• Reduced risk of injury when you spin in comparison to other cardio workouts
• You can adjust your resistance! 

If you like cycling, you'll love spinning! It's an indoor version. 

The best thing about cycling is the view, the best about spinning is the music! 

I'm a nervous pervous cycling on the road... only my mother can make me do it! 

Check out some of my spinning classes here 

See what makes you smile!

Mindset makes a difference. This is true. 

Scenario: You wake up, the sun is shining, the dogs didn't pee in the kitchen & the countertop is clean from last nights dinner - yippee - it's going to be a great day! You go up & get dressed, check yourself out in the mirror, you're looking good!

The the next thing, your boss rings & that's never a good sign... You put down the phone & you're annoyed now!

You go back to brush your teeth & you now "look like s**t".
(If this has never happened to - you're a lucky duck!)

The ONLY thing that has happened is that your good mood turned bad... BECAUSE YOU LET IT! You feeling upset/bad/annoyed whatever the circumstance may be, makes no difference to the existing problem, it only makes a difference to you!

You look EXACTLY the same as you did ten minutes earlier, you just FEEL different. However, the only difference was your mindset! So find a solution to stop this happening.

Soooo pick something you like, something that you love (I love flowers) and when you see it - feel grateful & happy. I keep flowers in my kitchen, in the garden, when I drive, there in other people's gardens, they're outside shops, they're everywhere - they're my constant reminder of everything I have to be grateful for.

Choose whatever you love and let it be a trigger to remind you of all the things in life that your love!

This is a long topic which ill tap in & out of over time!

Have a happy evening girls :)

CLEAN 9

Ok, so as I mentioned last week, I've started the Clean 9 detox....(feel free to scroll to the end to see my results! In between is my food diary for the week!)

Day 1 & Day 2

120 ml aloe gel (2 shots) x 4 times per day
2 Garcina Supplements x 3 times per day
2 Bee Pollen Supplements x 2 times per day
1 Aminotein Protein Shake

Day 3 to Day 9


120 ml aloe gel (2 shots) x 4 times per day
2 Garcina Supplements x 3 times per day (before your meals)
2 Bee Pollen Supplements x 2 times per day
2 Aminotein Protein Shakes (breaki & lunch)
1 600kcal meal

Clean 9 Diary

Day 1 = Friday: OK, on a mission, I can do this!!!! 

Woke up and feeling in good form!
9.00am : Had my aloe, garcina and bee pollen (also my other supps that i take: freedom, probiotics and vitamin a & c).
10.30am : Pilates class
1.00pm : Had my aloe, garcina & bee pollen
(still in work)
6.00pm : Had my aloe, garcina, bee pollen and shake (made with almond milk)

Drank 2 litres of water throughout the day!


Day 2 = Saturday: Kinda hungry, but feeling motivated

Missing my eggs, but i've gotten over it!
8.00am : Had my aloe, garcina and bee pollen (also my other supps that i take: freedom, probiotics and vitamin a & c).
1.00pm : Had my aloe, garcina & bee pollen
(at a course all day)
6.00pm : Had my aloe, garcina, bee pollen and shake (made with almond milk)
- Saturday night was hard, not going to lie, but I stuck it out!
Drank 2 litres of water throughout the day!


Day 3 = Sunday: Very excited to eat my meal today!

Feeling energetic, no junk in the slightest in my system for whole 2 days
10.00am : Weight training hard sessions
11.30am : Had my aloe, garcina and bee pollen (also my other supps that i take: freedom, probiotics and vitamin a & c) AND my shake (almond milk)
4.00pm : Had my aloe, garcina & bee pollen & meal = 3 prawns, cod and carrots & slither of sponge cake (now, obviously I wouldn't recommend cake, but I was at a very important communion :) )
8.00pm : Had my aloe, garcina, bee pollen and shake (made with almond milk)
Drank 2 litres of water throughout the day!

Day 4 = Monday: Home sailing!

9.30am : Had my aloe, garcina and bee pollen (also my other supps that i take: freedom, probiotics and vitamin a & c and shake (made with almond milk)
1.00pm : Had my aloe, garcina & bee pollen and shake (made with almond milk)
5.00pm : 1 yoghurt rice cake
7.30pm : Had my aloe, garcina, bee pollen, had salmon 3 egg omelette with mushrooms and onion
8.00pm : Sliced fresh mango
Drank 2 litres of water throughout the day!


Day 5 = Tuesday: Easy Peasy

8.00am : Had my aloe, garcina and bee pollen (also my other supps that i take: freedom, probiotics and vitamin a & c) & shake.
12.00pm: Pilates Class & 30 minute alter G run
1.00pm : Had my aloe, garcina & bee pollen & shake
(at a course all day)
6.00pm : Had my aloe, garcina, bee pollen and 3 egg omelette with organic chicken, mushrooms & onion.
Drank 2 litres of water throughout the day!


Day 6 = Wednesday: N for Normal

8.30am : Had my aloe, garcina and bee pollen (also my other supps... you know them at this stage)
3.00pm : Had my aloe, garcina & bee pollen (bit too long of a stretch) & shake
5.30pm: Had a handful of almonds and a green tea
7.30pm : Had my aloe & garcina, bee pollen, organic salmon fillet with mushrooms and yummy broccoli (nice and crunchy)
Drank 2 litres of water throughout the day!

Day 7 = Thursday: Long Day

8.30am : Had my aloe, garcina and bee pollen (also my other supps)
3.00pm : Had my aloe, garcina & bee pollen (bit too long of a stretch)
5.00pm: Had my aloe Fab (amazing boost drink - had a busy product night ahead in Carlow)
7.30pm : Had my aloe & garcina, bee pollen
10.30pm: 4 chicken pieces with 1 slice of cheese (very late getting in, was starving, made the best out of a bad situation)
Drank 2 litres of water throughout the day!


Day 8 = Thank God it's Friday9
8.30am : Had my aloe, garcina and bee pollen (also my other supps) & shake
1.00pm : Had my aloe, garcina & bee pollen & shake
4.30pm: Had my aloe Fab then did 60 minute weight training
6.30pm : Sparkling water and some nuts
9.00pm: Aloe & Garcina, bee pollen, then, 2 beef burgers with slice of cheese and green beans
Drank 2 litres of water throughout the day!

Day 9 = No comment - VERY BAD EATING DAY
8.30am : Had my aloe, garcina and bee pollen (also my other supps) 2 eggs & 2 pieces of bacon.
3.00pm : Had my aloe, garcina & bee pollen & shake
6.30pm : Aloe & Garcina, bee pollen Sparkling water, thai green curry and 1 piece of chocolate biscuit cake and a couple of strawberry jellies!!!!
9.00pm: Green tea
Not nearly enough water!


Ok, so my final day was not great!! And this week if you may have noticed, my training regime wasn't as good as usual... However, I have lost 4 kg in the 9 days! For me, thats a lot!!! I'm actually the lightest i have been in 4 years at this exact moment!

What I adore about the clean 9 detox is that you often continue to lose after you finish, so i'll update you during the week :)

If you're interested in trying the Clean 9, PLEASE message me on facebook so I can chat to you about it :)