My Healthy Waffles Recipe

Yields 3 servings  Calories: 116   Protein 12.7g | Carbs 10g | Fat 2.5g

Ingredients                                                                            

• 4 egg whites

• 1 whole egg

• two tbsp granulated sweetener 

• 1/2 scoop protein powder (flavour of choice)

• 4 tbsp of oats (kind does not matter)

• dash of cinnamon

• 1/2 tsp baking powder

• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract

• 1 tbsp greek yogurt (or 1 tbsp of salt-free fat-free labneh)

 Directions        

                                                                      

1.    Blend all the ingredients in a blender until a batter of smooth texture is formed

2.    Heat your *waffle iron and grease by spraying lavishly with PAM fat-free cooking spray 

3.    Pour part of the mixture into the waffle iron and wait for a couple of minutes until it completely bakes

4.    Remove from waffle iron and top with strawberries, light whipped cream and light chocolate sauce

5.    ¡Sahten! Enjoy!

Note: *The waffle iron can be found at most home appliances stores for an affordable price. Shoot me a private message if you want to know where I got mine from. 

A lot of time goes into preparing the recipes and writing the articles. If you enjoyed reading and want me to keep writing useful articles like this one, please click on like and share it among your friends. 

Should you have any question, feel free to post it in the comment section below and I'll answer them as soon as I can.

The Best Personal Fitness Trainer in Beirut, Lebanon (Part 2)

Let me ask you: If a client comes and they’re tired, anxious and depressed. They have been eating junk and haven’t slept well the night before, should I train them the exact way I planned to before? 

The answer is no!

To put the answer in perspective, trainers really need to understand that personal training deals primarily with ‘people’ first then ‘training’ second. A personal trainer cannot deliver high value to clients each and every time if they don't consider all of their clients' systems... it's not only about muscles! All of the systems in the body are inter-connected during personal training; therefore, yes, personal training is ‘holistic’ in nature. A trainer needs to be aware of those factors: That’s what separates a great trainer from an average one.

Let’s talk a little Science

Humans have several systems that work together. They are:

The musculoskeletal system – our bones and muscles

The limbic system – the brain and our nervous system

The endocrine system – our hormones, gut and digestion tract

One might think that these systems are separate, but they’re all closely related. All of these systems communicate as one; they make up the entire control and response mechanism in the human organism.

As such, if you place a stress on one system, stress will be translated into another system. An example: If I yelled at you (stressed your limbic system), your muscles would tighten up. Another example is if you had just broken your leg and you’re in shock, you’d be anxious and fearful (both limbic system), and obviously you won’t be feeling like eating (endocrine response).

So, all of these systems interact. A stressor in one system has an influence on another system. Exercise is a kind of ‘stressor’ that improves many systems in the body at the same time. For example, how many times have you felt so well after exercising? Not only that, but research shows that alertness and mental performance improve with exercise.

Re-imagining physical training

Any ‘trainer’ can pass dumbbells around. A good personal trainer is much more. 

A good personal trainer is part communicator, part psychologist, part physiotherapist, part researcher, part motivator who makes clients emotionally commit to achieve results; who provides space for clients to share their limbic stress through communication; a personal trainer discusses and improves the nutritional behaviors of his/her clients, and provides a joyful experience of training. 

 A personal trainer re-imagines the session to make it an amazing experience for their client each and every time. 

If any trainer wants to be significant and have a purpose in their career – they should stop thinking about the monetary aspect of the fitness industry and figure out how to make people’s lives better. All of those who succeeded for real were problem solvers; they figured out ways to improve the lives of others. It is contagious and their own life will be better in return!


Also check part 1 of the article: hiring a personal trainer in Beirut

Build These 6 Habits and Get a Solid Six-Pack

If you are sweating your heart out in the gym, tossing a lot of dumbbells around, reading about different

diets and not sure which one to follow, using a lot of tricks and gimmicks someone swore to you about, but the results somehow still refuse to come and you can’t get a ripped body, you are not alone. What should be a simple process has gone a bit too complicated especially with so much contradicting information around. It's time to stop and think what possibly could be holding you back. Analyzing my clients' lifestyle, their behavioral patterns and how they spend their days is a method I employ in my holistic approach to personal training to help people get outstanding results naturally. You should take a step back and analyze your habits as well. Let me help you with some pieces of advice:

Things to remember to get a solid six-pack:

1. Discipline Your Motivation.
2. Have Breakfast.
3. Control your food portions.
4. Keep a workout journal.
5. Sets Goals.
6. Train with a partner.

Discipline your motivation

Motivation fades according to your mood and how you're feeling, but discipline is rock solid. I have long told my friends and clients that a bad training program consistently followed is better than a great training program executed only every now and then. When you stick long enough to your training program, magic happens: your motivation becomes a deeply embedded discipline and you will definitely see results. Guaranteed. Everyone, including dedicated athletes and fitness enthusiasts like me don't always feel like working out, but we do it anyway. It’s all about trusting the process. to fail or to succeed is mental and it comes from within. There's no denial that once you have allocated time to train, the training program chosen is of great importance, especially that it has to match your own goals and needs. Always look for programs that are suitable for you and appropriate fitness level.

Have breakfast

Breakfast is hands down of the most important meals of the day. There research is out there: if you regularly skip eating breakfast, you’re more likely to stay out of shape, put on excess weight and have your dream to get a sexy body and a chiseled six-pack completely shattered. Your metabolism kicks off and so does the fat burning process when you have a quality and nutritious breakfast first thing in the morning, your energy levels rise and you're ready to conquer your day.

Control your food portions

It's easy to go overboard when eating without knowing how much of what you should be consuming. As a general rule, you should limit your protein intake, such as chicken breasts, steak or fish, to the size of the palm of your hand, the carbohydrate intake to the size of your closed fist, and as healthy fats are calorie-dense, to just consume a handful of nuts, or if you're having oil in your salad, to just add one tablespoon. Make sure to consume your vegetables, especially the fibrous ones such as broccoli, as they help keep you fuller for longer, thus minimizing the chance of you having sugar cravings a while later.

Keep a workout journal

Every little meeting at a corporate environment requires briefing and debriefing. Even if you're driving to see your aunt, you have a clear idea where you're heading. Why should training be any different? You need to closely monitor your workouts with precision. You don't have to be traditional like me and use a pen and paper. You can use your mobile phone's Notes application, word documents, or websites to put you in control of the process. Anything that is convenient to you. Monitor your workout duration too and you will quickly see how you will train more intensely, with better sharpness, direction, focus an intensity. Instead of those two hours of chatting with a few minutes of training every now and then, you will train intensely for much shorter time and separate yourself from most gym-goers: you will actually have results!

Set Goals

Goals you set should be S.M.A.R.T. 

S for specific.

M for measurable.

A for attainable.

R for realistic.

T for timely.

When you hold yourself accountable and have a goal of dropping 1 pound of fat a week, you are more likely to realize it if it's clear in your mind. Always keep your goals realistic and achievable. Rome wasn't built in a day. Set small realistic goals and achieve them one at a time, and with time, when you zoom out the picture, you will see that the pieces are coming together and you're a true achiever!

Train with a partner

Everyone has their worries and a stress weighing them down in their lives. Training with someone can make you more focused, make the exercise more fun, will help push you harder, and in turn get better results and bring you closer to your dream body. Look out for a friend with similar goals or a qualified personal trainer that can help you reach your goals. It is incredible how enhanced your results will be when you have someone to hold you accountable and push you hard. 

How to Lose more Fat and Build more Muscle in Less Time?

One of the most important variables in training program design that can make a world of difference when it comes to the results you get is pretty simple and straightforward to implement.  

That variable will make your training a lot more intense and induce a metabolic stress, enhance your endurance, your VO2 max and your aerobic and anaerobic capacity. 


That variable, if properly tweaked, it can make your workout a LOT more effective. It is: rest time. 

I have consistently been using it on myself and my clients and have been getting great results. 

Not only can it substantially help in fat loss but also muscular development. Yes, that's true and my years of experience in the gym, my experiments on my body as well as those of my clients, and reading a lot of research behind it all support it well.

I have long advocated the following philosophy: Get in, get it done, and get out.

Not only will it make your training more effective, but also a lot shorter, giving you more time to do other things in your life than be spending long hours at the gymnasium.

Even to the people seeking more muscular development can benefit immensely by shortening their rest time and keeping it under a minute. 

Actually if the same muscle groups are forced to work with minimum recovery it can lead to faster development of metabolic and hypertrophy-related adaptations in the muscle.


Fitness Expert and International NASM Certified Coach, Djoe Mitri

Read how I changed my own life here
Check the results of some of my clients here
Check my motivational video here
Like my Facebook Page for daily motivation, tips, recipes and information.

References to the research:

-Parra J, Cadefau JA, Rodas G, Amigó N, Cussó R. The distribution of rest proofs affects performance and adaptations of energy metabolism induced by high-intensity training in human muscle. Acta Physiol Scand. 2000;169:157-165

- McCall GE, Byrnes WC, Fleck SJ, Dickinson A, Kraemer WJ. Acute and chronic hormonal responses to resistance training designed to promoted muscle hypertrophy.

- Ratamess NA, Falvo MJ, Mangine GY, Hoffman JR, Faigenbaum AD, Kang J. The effect of rest interval length on metabolic responses to the bench press exercise.

How to Prepare Creamy Ice Cream With Just 1 Ingredient?

A true indulgence in all its glorious creaminess powered by me. And it's made of only 1 ingredient: Just Banana!

It's so simple to make that even if you can't do your bed in the morning you can still easily prepare this one!


So, what if I told you that all that glorious creaminess can be prepared in about 1 minute, the texture would be amazing, the flavor quite exquisite and WITHOUT needing to add any artificial flavoring, sugar, sweeteners, or other ingredients?

Yes, all the magic lies in the BANANA.


Directions:

1- Take a large ripe banana, peel it and cut it into small coins and place in the freezer for 24 hours.

2- Take out, and using a food processor blend it well. Keep blending it until it gets real creamy.

3- Place into a plate, and eat immediately!


An awesome idea?

Mint Chip Ice Cream:

How about blending it with a few drops of peppermint oil and some dark chocolate chips?

Chocolate Coconut Ice Cream:

How about adding a tbsp of unsweetened cocoa powder, and some unsweetened coconut flakes while in the blending process?

Peanut Butter Raisin Ice Cream:

How about adding a tbsp of peanut butter in the blending process and then throwing in a few raisins at the end?

Get Creative and share your ideas!