M&M's Road to Swole

We are Maddy and Mingming. We wanted to reach our full potential of badassery, so we are sharing our fitness process and self-care tips with you all. 💪😏👯

[mmroadtoswole]

Muscle Recovery Smoothie

Recipe time!!!! 

Whipped up this recipe for a delicious smoothie designed to boost muscle recovery! It is SO YUMMY and tastes just like a milkshake (even though I do admit, it looks a little gross). Usually smoothies can be absolutely loaded with sugar, but this one is fairly healthy on the carb front and the texture is really creamy! 

In a blender, put:

1 banana, in pieces

1-2 cups of spinach

1 scoop of chocolate protein of your choice

1 cup of milk of your choice (I used high protein almond milk)

a dash of vanilla extract

12-14 ice cubes

1/3 cup of water

And BLEND IT ALL UP! 

The spinach and banana are loaded with potassium, which helps with muscle soreness and replenishing electrolytes, and the protein helps rebuild your muscles! 

With the ingredients I used, the total protein count came out to a whopping 35 GRAMS! The calorie count comes out out to about 300 depending on what you use, so it’s good for breakfast or for an afternoon small meal! You could also try subbing out the milk with some vanilla greek yogurt, which would up the protein count a little and make the consistency a lot thicker! 

Hope y’all try it out- let us know what you think!

Maddy

[mmroadtoswole]

Intuitive Eating

Hey everyone!

Hope July has been treating you all well! Ours has been full of celebration, friends, love, adventure, and delicious food! 

One goal I’ve set for July is to start eating intuitively instead of counting calories and macros. I’ve tried it out for about a week now and it is working SO MUCH BETTER for me! My binge eating has reduced (since I’m not under-eating so much), I’m so much less preoccupied about food, and I’m actively making healthier choices since I have to think about what nutrients I’m missing for each meal!

I have also been trying out this app called Ultimate Food Value Diary to help me start out - I HIGHLY recommend it (and I promise I haven’t been sponsored to do this), especially for people who are really used to tracking and counting calories in macros, since you can still “track” but it’s so much healthier and easier! Each food is graded with a point system, and you are allotted some amount of points for day, as well as extra points you can use throughout the week! If you exercise, you also get more points. Fruits and veggies are pretty much free, and other foods are assigned values based on nutritional value. It’s also great because you can track your moods and healthy choices you make (hydration, healthy fats, taking your vitamins, etc.) The diary is similar to My Fitness Pal, but I find myself less bogged down with details.  Here is a screenshot of the dashboard! 

I’m excited for what this new approach has been doing for my mental health and mind set, and am excited to SMASH my goals! 

Maddy 

[onlinecounsellingcollege]

How to be Your own Best Friend

1. Treat yourself the way you would treat a person who you loved, highly valued, and cared about.

2. Always love yourself – no matter what!

3. Only say positive, compassionate, understanding and affirming things about, and to, yourself.

4. Hold your own hand in tough and stressful times. Don’t abandon yourself, or let yourself down.

5. Respect yourself, and the efforts that you’re making to be a better person, and to change and to grow.

6. Understand your limitations, be patient with yourself. Accept that it takes time to master anything at all.

7. Be kind to yourself when you feel self-critical, or you want to be judgmental and hard on yourself.

[mmroadtoswole]

Self-Care Tips #2: Beat the Heat

Hey followers!

I don’t know about you all, but it has been RIDICULOUSLY hot for the past couple of days where we live. Yesterday it went up to 104 degrees! #ded

It’s super important not to overdo it, especially when it’s hot out - it puts you at increased risk for severe dehydration, heat sickness, heat stroke, and more :(

So, here are some tips for when you still want to keep active, but feel like it’s just too damn hot!!! 

STAY HYDRATED. This is so obvious but so important. You might also consider investing in a cool double-walled water bottle that can keep drinks cold for a really long time! I have a gigantic blender bottle that I carry with me at all times and keep replenishing whenever I finish it. On really hot days, sometimes I drink up to 18 cups of water! Listen to what your body needs and don’t overthink calculating your water intake. 

Make sure you are replenishing electrolytes! Sweating makes you lose a lot of salts, and it is super crucial you replace those! The easiest electrolytes to consume are sodium and potassium. Sodium is basically in anything salty, and potassium is found in many fruits and veggies (leafy greens, bananas, dates, etc.) Make sure you hydrate after that salty food though, too!

Gyms usually have AC, so you can beat the heat that way. But summer is always a great time to explore the outdoors! There are lots of gorgeous, shaded wooded areas in many parts of the country, you might consider a day trip for hiking in the beautiful woods! Hiking near water or on coastal regions (if available to you) will also be much cooler than anywhere inland. 

Avoid strenuous hikes with very high elevation in the hot sun! Elevation sickness combined with heat sickness is probably one of the worst feelings in the world (been there done that, take my word for it).

Try water-based workouts. Swimming is both great cardio and resistance training because of the drag from the water! Great for toning and burning calories.

Go for evening walks. The sunset is always beautiful, and walking or jogging outside when it’s cooler is both more appealing and more healthy than in the blazing hot afternoon sun! 

Use a good SPF! Sunburn is never fun, and excessive exposure to radiation both ages your skin rapidly and could be carcinogenic. Try to aim for SPF 35-50, and make sure it is water resistant so you don’t sweat it all off!

Embrace the sweat. Don’t feel like you have to take it easy while working out because you don’t want to get sweaty! Sometimes you just have to commit, and take a refreshing cold shower afterwards.

Hope these tips help! Message us if you have any more useful tips for beating the heat! 

Stay cool,

Maddy

[mmroadtoswole]

Getting Back on Track

Hey all!

It has been a SEVERELY long time since we’ve posted anything on this blog, and we super apologize for that! 

Truth be told, the past couple of months have been a little rough! I’ve definitely fallen off the wagon in the past month of so because of being preoccupied with lots of other life things. Also, since summer has started, it has been party central and I’ve been pretty indulgent as well. 

I often used to get real stressed out about being too indulgent, binge eating, binge drinking, and other things like that. It would make me feel scared to get back to routine, to get back to the gym, to look at bloated self in the mirror the next day. But the past several weeks have definitely been an exercise in self-love and in maintaining a positive attitude about food and treating myself. Food is fuel! I love my friends and I love celebrating with them! And keeping my holistic health as my main focus (i.e. not only my “fitness,” but my energy levels, my intellectual stimulation, my emotional health, my social health, my sleep, my career goals) is the most important thing. 

Here’s a picture of me from today. Though my body fat percentage has definitely increased (and I’m rocking my abdominal bloat from a weekend full of friendship, wine, dosa, and celebration), I think this is the strongest and most powerful I have felt in ages. When I was growing up at school, I wasn’t even able to do a single proper push-up, and now I can do 6 with perfect form! I’m finding myself standing straighter, able to hold my poses longer and stronger at dance, less and less sore every day. I’ve also started challenging myself in terms of cardio- I’ve been trying kickboxing and some running which has enormously helped with my frustration and mental health. 

Here’s to this June (and the rest of the year) being a great one! 

Peace, 

Maddy

[mmroadtoswole]

HAPPY MAY!!!

I love this season because it’s when it starts to feel like summer (my favorite season). I just love basking in the sun and feeling the heat on my back and the warm floral scents everywhere.

And, since it’s the beginning of the month, it’s also a great time to set some goals!

April was a rough month for me fitness wise. I didn’t exercise as much as I had planned to, and I was extra indulgent with my eating since I did a lot of socializing! It was amazing, and I was SO HAPPY to be reunited with my best friend after almost 2 years of not seeing her! But I definitely overdid it on the eating and drinking and dessert... hehe. Needless to say, I made some gainz but they may not have been the kind I was hoping. 

So, I’m using May to refresh myself and let my liver recover from last month! My goals are to:

Eat more fruits and veggies as snacks instead of junk

Cut down on my caffeine intake

Limit drinking to once a week, and if I go out, no more than 2 drinks in a night! 

GET OUTSIDE AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE! This weather is the best for going hiking and doing active things outdoors, and those are some of my favorite things to do. Who said the gym was the only way? :)

So excited for this season to start! I’ll make a prog pic and body fat % progress post soon!

- Maddy

What are your goals for the next month?

[mmroadtoswole]

Fitness haul!!! WOO! Bought myself a few things to make being active a bit more awesome. 1. Under Armour Sports Bra- I've always wanted a sports bra with thick band with the brand name under the boob.It's super cute, a great color, was only $14 at Marshalls (if you haven't shopped for activewear at Marshalls or TJ Maxx you're doing it wrong 😉) 2. Ray-Ban Sunnies - I currently work at an eye clinic so I get major discounts on glasses, and these ones were wayyy too cute to pass up. Perfect for spring and summer with flash mirror lenses, so I can look cool as a cucumber~ 3. BCAAs - I've been thinking about getting BCAAs to help me during and after my workouts, so I picked up some Amino Energy from Vitamin Shoppe. It's not *really* BCAAs in entirety, but it's also got caffeine and amino acids, so it doubles as a pre-workout kickstart and post-workout repair. The flavor is Blueberry Mojito, and it tastes SO GOOD. I try not to overdo the caffeine, so I usually only put 1-2 scoops in my water bottle before the gym and it helps me power through my workouts! 4. Microfiber Towels - I am a REALLY sweaty person, and the hand towels I had been using at the gym weren't cutting it, so I picked these up from the kitchen section and do they soak up the sweat!!! Also they don't feel so grimey and gross at the end, and I got 4 so I don't have to do laundry every damn day :) I can't wait to use all this stuff! Getting new fitness swag always motivates me to work a little harder at the gym. How do y'all like to treat yourself? - Maddy

[mmroadtoswole]

Today's lunch: English Muffin Vegan Burger with Greens and Tomato Salad! My Easter weekend was pretty rough on my diet and exercise (and I don't even celebrate Easter), so I made it a point this week to reset my digestive system and gym schedule by eating lots of fruits and veggies and hitting the gym again! I'm sure many of you can empathize- we got this! 💪🏼 I did however buy some Boca burger patties over the weekend- they are so full of protein, really satisfying to eat, and taste amazing, AND are VEGAN! The nice thing about them is that they are super protein dense- 70 calories and 13 grams of protein! Also, cooking it requires little to no oil, so you can eliminate all the greasiness and still get a crispy on the outside feel to the party. So... I decided to have a burger for lunch, because who said fast food can't be healthy? 🍔 I used a multigrain English muffin instead of a bun because it is a little more protein dense (and more whole grains) than a regular bun :) I spread ketchup on the bottom, put the cooked patty on top, and put a slice of reduced fat cheddar on top! You could make this vegan by using vegan cheese instead, or skipping it altogether. The salad was simple: mixture of kale, spinach, and chard, sliced Roma tomatoes, chili flakes, salt, lemon juice, and a little olive oil. Very fresh 🍅🥗 Nutrition counts: The burger with the English muffin and cheddar comes out to only 290 calories and 26 grams of protein! DAMN SON. The side salad adds a ton of antioxidants and vitamins and minerals (especially iron), and only tallies up to about 100 calories (with 4 more grams of protein! Thanks greens 😊) Hope y'all enjoy~ - Maddy

[mmroadtoswole]

Measured my body fat percentage at the gym, and found out I’ve gotten it to 18%! That’s in the athletic range for females! Growing up I was never particularly athletic in spite of my dancing, so this is huge! I’m so proud of all of my progress so far and can’t wait to keep on working on myself and getting stronger 💪🏼

Keep it up everyone! Never forget all the benefits that staying active will bring you. For me, physical changes are just a side effect- going to the gym has saved me from depression, has made me feel proud of my body and what it can do, and has made me feel better about myself and stronger and determined than ever in all areas of my life ❤ Do what makes you excited. Do what keeps you feeling interested. Do what makes you feel ready to take life by the horns!

- Maddy

[mmroadtoswole]

Haven’t had a chance to take full body progress photos for April yet, but I have been noticing some good size and strength progress in the arms and in upper part of my abs (unflexed in photo)!

- Maddy

[mmroadtoswole]

I’m back... with more HEALTHY JUNK FOOD HACKS!

Here is a recipe I tried out today for 3-ingredient peanut butter cookies. They are super healthy, completely flourless, lower calories than regular cookies, and no butter.... And they are very delicious and warm and chewy and perfect with a cold glass of milk. 

These literally took me only 10 minutes to make - I was feeling restless and hankering for something sweet that wouldn’t make me have a million regrets, so I whipped this together! There are lots of similar recipes on the internet if you want to try some variations as well.

You will need:

1 egg, large

1 cup of peanut butter (I used creamy, you could use any! Also, you could substitute any other nut butter you wanted)

1/2 cup of sugar (if you want to opt less refined, you could use coconut sugar or maple syrup. Keep in mind that if you use liquid sweeteners the cookies may come out softer). 

First, preheat the oven to 350 F. To make these, just combine all the ingredients in a bowl. That’s literally it. Mix it until it forms a cookie dough consistency, and then roll it into little balls and put it on a cookie sheet. I put mine on parchment paper for easy cleanup and removal of cookies from the cookie sheet - didn’t even have to grease anything! To make the cute little pb cookie lines, I just pushed down on each cookie dough ball with a fork. Then bake for 8-10 minutes until they are golden brown! 

Let’s get to the nutrition part. These are WAY lower in calories than regular cookies. I made about 16 cookies in my batch, and they came out to about ~120 calories a piece! (This means, if you make more, they’ll be even better). Also, they each have 4 grams of protein, and some healthy fats from the peanut butter to keep you full :) 

YUM. You’re welcome. :* Love you all! 

- Maddy

[mmroadtoswole]

~They call me the salad queen~

I used to hate eating salads because I would always wonder why I’d want to just eat leaves and rabbit food. I used to eat really boring salads in college when there weren’t any vegetarian options available.

I discovered that the key to enjoying salad (and still feeling full after) is incorporating healthy fats and proteins into the salad! Also, in lieu of dressing (which is full of unhealthy fats), I drizzle a tiny bit of olive oil and vinegar on and add lots of herbs and seasonings!

My salad today had:

3 cups spinach and arugula mix

1 soft boiled egg, cut into pieces

1 Boca burger patty, chopped

1 large Roma tomato, sliced

1 cup sliced white mushrooms

1 tsp olive oil

1 tsp red wine vinegar

Sea salt

Black pepper

Crushed red pepper flakes

As you can see, lots of healthy fats from the egg and olive oil, as well as 20g of protein from the egg and burger bits!

Also, a meal prep hack: if you want to take your salad to work or school, put it in a mason jar! Put the liquids/dressings at the bottom, all of the non-wilt-able veggies and proteins next, and the greens on top! That way the salad doesn’t get soggy. Then, when you’re ready to eat, just shake the jar to toss it up and eat!

What are your favorite salad additions?

- Maddy

[mmroadtoswole]

From inflammation to sickness and depression: when the immune system subjugates the brain

In response to a peripheral infection, innate immune cells produce pro-inflammatory cytokines that act on the brain to cause sickness behaviour. When activation of the peripheral immune system continues unabated, such as during systemic infections, cancer ...

Hi all,

Mingming here! I haven’t made many contributions of my own to the blog so far, so I thought I would address something that has been on my mind recently.

Like Maddy, I also came down with a yucky bug this week. I have found myself vulnerable to feeling anxious or depressed when sick, and it’s even more difficult when I can’t go to the gym or get out and do something to take my mind off of things, and relieve anxiety/depression symptoms.

I wanted to discuss cytokines and the role they play in our mood when we are sick. Our immune system activates inflammatory cytokines to help combat infections or heal from injury. While cytokines play a crucial role in recovery which I’m forever grateful for, there’s also evidence that increased cytokines in our bloodstream can be a link to depression/anxiety. “Mechanisms of cytokine behavioral effects involve activation of inflammatory signaling pathways in the brain that results in changes in monoamine, glutamate, and neuropeptide systems.” (Felger and Lotrich, 2013) I have read other sources that say that inflammatory cytokines can suppress serotonin release in the body, another culprit for depression.

Anyway, when I’m feeling blue, it can really help me to remember some of the physiological factors that might be affecting my mood so that I don’t get too carried away in my own mind. It helps me address the root cause. So far, I’ve found naps, lots of water, and distracting, mellow activities (e.g. TV, movies, skyping or texting a friend, listening to music, reading) to be helpful. I’m focusing on combating the physical disease. Whatever emotional baggage is left over after sickness can be resolved once I’m well again.

On that note, take care of your bodies in order to take care of your mind, and vice versa! Perhaps this tidbit will help others who are sick this season.

-Mingming

Also, we’d love to hear from you all: what has worked for you to lighten your mood when you are sick?

[mmroadtoswole]

Feeling a little icky today since I’m coming down with a cold, so I made a really healthy and warm veggie noodle soup for my lunch!

Ingredients:

2 cups Trader Joe’s Low Sodium Vegetable Broth

2 oz noodles

1 head of broccoli, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

1 tomato, chopped

½ cup of white sweet corn kernels

Pepper to taste

All you need to do is boil the noodles. Then bring the broth to a boil, add in the veggies and cooked noodles, and stir until the veggies are the texture that you want them!

It was really easy on my stomach, low in calories, and full of so many antioxidants and nutrients and fiber!

- Maddy

[mmroadtoswole]

Triceps Tuesday

Happy Tuesday everyone! Planning my workout for tonight: chest and triceps training day! I like to mix it up between exercises for building muscle and exercises for muscle endurance and cardio endurance! 

10 min of HIIT Cardio (30 seconds run, 30 seconds rest and repeat)

Water break

Pec flies (machine). 3 sets, 12-15 reps

Chest press (machine or barbell). 3 sets, 8-10 reps

Circuit: 30 seconds pushups, 30 seconds tricep dips (on a stool), 30 seconds tricep kickbacks (with dumbbells), 30 second squat + medicine ball press, 30 seconds rest. Repeat x 4

Water break

Flat bench dumbbell press. 3 sets, 10-12 reps

Seated overhead skullcrushers. 3 sets, 12-15 reps

Good luck to my arms tomorrow after this workout. 

- Maddy

[mmroadtoswole]

RECIPE TIME!

Healthy junk food hacks are the best! Here’s an awesome, awesome recipe I invented for tofu french fries. They give you the satisfaction of eating fries, but are pretty much guilt-free (they are baked) and SO high in protein, AND they are vegan! They are super delicious and made a great lunch for me today :)

You will need:

½ block (~ 9 oz) of Super firm tofu  - I used Trader Joe’s Super High Protein Tofu

2 tsp of olive oil

2 tsp of rice vinegar

2 tsp of low sodium soy sauce

What you need to do is:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

2. Cut the tofu into really, really thin strips. Thickness as desired. Place a layer of paper towels both below and above the tofu strips, and lay weight (I used textbooks) on top for about 10 minutes. This will help squeeze out all of the excess water - the drier your tofu, the better!

3. In the meantime, combine the olive oil, rice vinegar, and soy sauce in a bowl. You can technically marinate the tofu in anything you’d like, but I like the salty-tangy flavor of this marinade. Make sure you add a little oil though, or it won’t be crispy!

4. After tofu has been squeezed dry, roll the strips in your marinade. Lay them flat on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

5. Once all of the strips have been coated with the marinade and put on the baking sheet, bake for 10-15 minutes. Then flip the strips and bake another 5-10 minutes. They should be golden and crispy when ready.

6. Eat right away! I ate mine with chili ketchup and it was bomb.

Nutrition facts for the entire batch (if using Trader Joe’s Super High Protein Tofu, may be less calories and protein depending on what type of tofu you buy): 425 calories, 36 g of protein. Awesome. So if you split it with someone, you’d get a fixing of fries for about 200 calories. I ate the whole batch myself for lunch. It was still awesome.

Hope you all enjoy this recipe! Let me know how it turns out for you!

- Maddy

[mmroadtoswole]

My mid-morning snack! A big sesame cracker with a tablespoon of peanut butter- packed with protein and healthy fats!

-Maddy