Mini-Cheescakes

Ingredients:

• 12 low-fat vanilla wafers
• 3 oz. Cream cheese, at room temperature
• 12 oz. fat-free Cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup Sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 eggs
• Cherry pie filling

Directions:

1. Preheat over to 350 F. Line muffin tins with 12 foil cupcake papers. Place a vanilla wafer in the bottom of each cupcake paper.
2. In mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and fat-free cream until smooth. Add sugar and vanilla and mix well. Add eggs and beat until smooth.
3. Pour cheese cake mixture into muffin tins. Bake for 20 minutes or until centers are almost set. Cool. Refrigerate 2 hours or overnight.
4. Decorate cheesecake tops with cherry pie filling

Makes 12 cheesecakes/servings

Nutritional Info:

• Fat: 4.4 g
• Carbohydrates: 14.4g
• Calories: 120.6
• Protein: 6.0g

4 Signs It's Time to Chnage Your Workout Routine

When you started a regular exercise program, whether to lose weight or improve your overall health, your enthusiasm and motivation were high. Even though exercise wasn't the most exciting activity you had experienced, you began feeling better and seeing results from your hard work.
But then slowly, the novelty began to wear off. You start finding reasons to sleep in and found "better" things to do with your time. Then before you realize it, you have missed a whole week and your drive to continue is gone.
Here are four of the most common signs and what you can do to get back on track:

1. Your workout bores you. It is easy to get bored if you stick with the same routine for too long. It helps to add variety to your walks/exercise. Change can help keep your workouts fun and interesting, giving you something to look forward to.
2. Your workout isn't giving you results anymore. When doing the same activity all the time it is likely to plateau much sooner than someone who varies their workout. Your body can adapt to these exercises so that they don't offer the same benefits that they once did. "Variety" means either changing something about your current routine or trying a totally different activity.
3. Your workout leaves you more tired and sore than before. Exercise should give you more energy, not leave you feeling rundown. If you're feeling overly tired or perpetually sore, you could be over training. Your body needs time for rest and recovery. Reevaluate your workout program and find ways to make changes that will prevent this from happening again.
4. Your workout is no longer challenging. If your workouts aren't challenging you anymore, find ways to increase or improve them. Challenging your body improves your fitness level and can also provide a sense of accomplishment as you become stronger and work toward your goals.

Changing your workout routing whenever these signs arise will help keep your motivation high as you work to improve your fitness level. The key is to pay close attention to how you're feeling both physically and mentally. Exercise shouldn't be a chore that you dread, but something thing that makes you feel good about yourself!

Apple-Ginger Oat Bran Muffins

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup 2 % milk
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cider vinegar
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup oat bran
• 1/2 cup (packed) light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 1/4 cup apple juice
• 2 tablespoons extra-light olive oil
• 3/4 cup finely chopped unpeeled apple
• 2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger

Topping:

• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon extra-light olive oil
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped unpeeled apple

Instructions:

1. Heat oven to 425 degrees F. Line the cups of a standard muffin pan with paper liners or coat cups with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a measuring cup, combing mile and vinegar, set aside
3. In a large bowl, combine next 7 dry ingredients. Make a well in the center, set aside.
4. In a medium bowl, combing milk with next ingredients. Pour mixture into well and stir until batter is still slightly lumpy.
5. Pour into muffin pan.
6. To make topping; In a bowl, combine flour and cinnamon. Stir in oil until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in apple. Sprinkle over batter.
7. Bake 15 to 18 minutes, or until tops are golden and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes in pan or a rack; remove from pan to cool completely.

Nutritional Information:

Per Serving:

151 calories

4 g protein

25g carbohydrate

5 g fat

2 g fiber

What are your Trigger Foods?

So what exactly are trigger foods? They are foods that once you start eating them it is very hard to stop. They maybe foods such as chips, candy, cookies, ice cream, brownies, etc. So how do you keep from eating these items?
Here are a few helpful tips:

1. DO NOT bring these foods into the house. It would be great if you can have 100% self-control but that is hard to do so if they are not in the house it is easier to avoid them.
2. DO NOT deprive yourself of any foods. Allow yourself to have these foods once in awhile but in limited amounts. If you do not once you get your hands on them you will not be able to stop.
3. When you crave a specific food, buy a single serving. For example M&M's having a huge bag of them is not a good idea but buying a snack size or a small individual serving size that is fine.
4. Find a healthy alternative to replace your craving with: Try and find something that will stratify that craving instead.
5. Out of sight out of mind. If you do not see the food item it is easy to not crave the item.

More times then not, if you don't have them in the house, you can usually find something else to distract you until the craving passes.

Keep a journal of things you find that work for you.