Meal Planning Week of July 23rd

Every once in a while in our household we need a reset.  A reset isn't a cleanse it just means we need to take a few weeks and eat really clean.  I actually really enjoy doing this from time to time.  I find that eating simple takes less time at night.  Eating simple for us means eating one serving of protein and one serving of steamed or grilled vegetable for every meal.  This can start to seem boring at times but we only do it for a few weeks so it isn't too bad.  The best part is how you feel after doing it though.  Unfortunately this does not lend itself to stellar meal planning blogs but I will let you know what we are eating each night.


Sunday- Grilled chicken skewers with teriyaki marinade and crab asparagus soup

We use a simple recipe for crab asparagus soup.  Two packets of egg drop soup mix from the Asian food section.  Make soup as indicated by directions but leave out egg.  Add two large handfuls of asparagus and a package of either imitation or real crab meat.  Simmer and enjoy.

Monday- Blackened Grouper with steamed green beans

I prefer to use Emeril's Blackening Seasoning which I find at King Soopers.  However, you could use any seasoning in a very lightly oiled pan.

Tuesday-Grilled chicken kabobs marinated in Italian dressing mix

Wednesday- Blackened Salmon with steamed broccoli

Same as the grouper, just a different fish and a different veggie.  This is really good the next day cold on top of a salad (and you don't have to be the person who microwaved the fish!).

Thursday- Shoestring Sweet Potatoes with sheet pan fajitas on top

https://sweetcsdesigns.com/crispy-baked-shoestring-sweet-potato-fries/http://lifemadesimplebakes.com/2016/06/sheet-pan-chicken-fajitas/

Meal Plan for Week of June 25th

Mason's Birthday week brings family in town and busy nights to our house getting ready.  Trying to keep it as simple as possible this week.  It is weeks like this when I don't want to plan, but by the end of the week I'm so thankful to have it all planned out.




Sunday- A busy day means grabbing roasted chicken and salad on the way home!
Monday- Quinoa Power Salad

http://www.thegardengrazer.com/2014/04/quinoa-avocado-spinach-power-salad.html
Tuesday- Chicken Enchiladas (We used leftover roasted chicken in this recipe from Sunday night.  A good easy way to get chicken is to buy a roast chicken from the grocery store and use that)

Wednesday- Tofu Tacos

http://thewoksoflife.com/2014/07/loaded-crispy-tofu-tacos/

Thursday- Brats and Broccoli Salad ( I usually go bun free on brats with stone ground mustard to make the healthier.  The bun is the calories and carbs.)

http://damndelicious.net/2017/06/19/creamy-broccoli-salad/
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run out of excuses.

lets be honest, just when i feel like i’ve got a grip on this workout thing, motivation drops, life goes crazy and then POOF, an excuse appears. its like magic, really. just when i need a reason not to get that run in, life almost always throws me a bone and gives me a solid reason not to.

take last week for instance. in a normal week, we operate at the level of busy, which is manageable, but much easier when you are firing on all cylinders. but then the stomach flu hit me. i had no choice but to sit life out for a day and do my best to recover. losing a day out of your week is hard and then trying to make up for it while you still aren’t one-hundred percent is even harder. 

so with 2 weeks until the colfax half-marathon, this weekend was supposed to be my longest training run, the grand finale, final push of training, if you will. but i was dehydrated and weak from being sick. i didn’t want my last big run before the race to be horrible and possibly injure myself or even get sick while running (no one wants that!). so i didn’t do it. 

but then i started feeling bad. excuses are so easy. and while this was a pretty good one, nothing about training for a race is supposed to be “easy.” and while the stomach flu wasn’t a part of the training plan, excuses aren’t either.

20,000 steps before 8:00AM!

so i found a way. it involved waiting an extra day to know that nasty flu was behind me. it meant getting up at 5:15am and starting my run in the dark so i could be home to be with mason in time for dr. chris to head up to adjust his sunday morning patients. it wasn’t the easy way. or the way i wanted to do it. but the satisfaction i got from pushing myself beyond the excuses was more than worth it. it wasn’t the 11 miles i was supposed to do this weekend, but 9.5 miles felt far greater than doing none and letting the excuses win. 

i’m not saying this is how it goes every time i want to sit one out. but this is a great reminder for me that the easy way doesn’t feel so good. and when the calendar is full and it doesn’t seem like there’s time to squeeze that run in, take a second look. 

but i’m not gonna lie, the nap i’m about to take is going to feel pretty amazing too!

- kristen

Meet Our New Kitchen Obsession!

We have a new awesome member of our small appliance kitchen family and we wanted to introduce you to it.  It is called an Instant Pot and it is remarkably awesome.  Why is it awesome you ask? Well, because when you are constantly going, it makes it easy to cook delicious, healthy food in very little time.  We were able to make an amazing chicken burrito bowl a few nights ago in less than 20 minutes start to finish.  That was with delicious moist chicken, long grain rice and sautéed onions and garlic all in one pot.


So what exactly is an instant pot might be the question you are thinking in your head.  Instant Pot is a multi-cooker that does the job of a slow cooker, electric pressure cooker, rice cooker, steamer, yogurt maker, sauté/browning pan, and warming pot.  We are still experimenting with all the different functions this machine has to offer but lets just say so far everything we have used it for has impressed us.  Perfect fluffy quinoa with no effort, no problem.  One pot meals that save cooking time and decrease dishes in your sink, yeah, it does that.  Hard boiled eggs that peel easier than any other hard boiled egg I have ever seen, yep, covered.  We even baked little tiny personal mini cakes in it last night.  Next on the agenda homemade yogurt, which I can't wait for since they add so much sugar to the store bought varieties.

You might see more Instant Pot recipes in the future on our blog and social media posts.  There is no shortage of recipes out their as this appliance has a huge cult following.  This isn't your grandma's pressure cooker, you don't have to be scared of it.  It wont blow up in your kitchen, at least I should say ours hasn't yet, as long as you follow directions you should be ok.  Tune in later to see how the homemade yogurt experiment goes.

- Dr. Chris

Meal Plan: Week of March 19th

Our last week in the office before vacation.  These weeks always prove to be chaotic and busy.  Typically I would want to just pick food up every other night or choose super simple unhealthy options.  However this week we are sticking to a plan so we don't feel miserable before leaving on our trip.

Sunday- Taco night, no special recipes here.  We make our taco meat out of ground turkey to reduce some of the calories and fat.  Also I think the key here is portioning.  Only take 3 taco shells for dinner that will keep you in check

Monday- One pan potatoes asparagus and Turkey Sausage

http://www.chelseasmessyapron.com/roasted-garlic-potatoes-and-sausage/
We really have loved doing one sheet pan recipes in the oven, they are quick and easy and do not require a lot of cooking effort.

Tuesday- Singapore Sweet Potato Noodles

https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/singapore-sweet-potato-noodles/

Wednesday- Greek Lemon Garlic Chicken Salad

https://cafedelites.com/2016/04/27/greek-lemon-garlic-chicken-salad/ The first thing you will notice about this salad is that it does not have lettuce which makes it delicious.  Instead of Lebanese cucumbers (I have no clue what these are!) I use English Cucumbers they aren't filled with seeds.  Also the better the feta you buy the better this salad will be, my Mom just delivered my feta order from the Greek grocer back home.

Thursday- Quinoa Avocado Power Salad

http://www.thegardengrazer.com/2014/04/quinoa-avocado-spinach-power-salad.html?m=1&crlt.pid=camp.2MLMimluwp9q
This one is a staple for is, it can be made ahead of time and pulled out of the fridge when you want to eat.  We add black beans to the mix to add protein.
- Dr. Chris

Meal Planning Week of March 12

A lot going on this week so the meal plan is going to look a little short.  We have a birthday party Sunday night.  Yes, this means cake and I won't turn it down, when occasion arises I definitely do take advantage.  One slice of cake won't kill me although it might put me in a sugar coma.  With my parents coming in town Thursday night we will probably going out to dinner Thursday - Saturday.  One smart suggestion I always have for dinner out is split a salad and an entree with somebody else then you get the lighter salad but the satisfaction of an entree as well.

If you stop by the office make sure to ask for New Patient VIP passes for your family and friends.  We are offering these passes to our existing patients as a thank you and an opportunity to help your family and friends lead a healthier life.

Sunday - Birthday Cake

Monday - California Roll Bowl

http://wonkywonderful.com/california-roll-sushi-bowl/

Tuesday - One Sheet Shrimp Fajitas (Kristen loved this recipe and requested it again.)

http://www.number-2-pencil.com/2016/09/21/one-sheet-pan-shrimp-fajitas/

Wednesday -  Thai Peanut Butter Chicken With Cauliflower Rice

https://www.averiecooks.com/2016/02/slow-cooker-thai-peanut-chicken.html

Cooking with oils Part 1: High Heat Cooking

There are many varieties of oils talked about and sold today in the market.  One of the most common oils sold is olive oil.  Olive oil is a great oil but it is not always your best cooking solution.  Other common oils I hear people talking about using are avocado oil, coconut oil, vegetable oil, sesame seed oil and canola oil.  So the question of this blog is what are the better oils for cooking food on high to medium high heat?

The first thing to know is every oil has a smoke point.  An oils smoke point is the point at which the oil will start smoking on your stove top.  Once oils reach this point the good nutrients begin to break down, a burnt flavor may be imparted on the food and a possible carcinogenic effect takes place in the oil. 

Some of my favorite oils for sautéing and searing foods on the stove top include avocado oil (smoke point of 520 degrees), coconut oil (smoke point of 350 degrees).

Benefits of cooking with avocado oil: first off it obviously has a very high smoke point making it almost impossible to burn.  Secondly it contains nutrients that are stable while cooking and help fight off inflammation.  Avocado oil contains monounsaturated fatty acids which help lower inflammatory messengers in the body.  Also, Avocado oil also contains high levels of oleic acid, carotenoids, lutein, vitamin E and phytosterols that combat inflammation.

Benefits of cooking with coconut oil: coconut oil contains saturated fats which are more stable under high heats.  The fats found in the oil are medium chain fatty acids which are easier for your body to break down than long chain fatty acids found in other vegetable oils.  These fats are easier used body to be broken down into energy and are also processed by the liver which means they are not readily stored in the body as fats.  Also expeller pressed coconut oil is not processed using chemicals, it also does not have a heavy coconut taste unless you get extra virgin coconut oil which tastes more like coconut. 

- Dr. Chris

Feb 12th weekly meal plan

This weeks meal plan includes spiralized sweet potatoes & riced cauliflower. I am planning on creating some you-tube videos this week to show the process for both. Also we will be using some shredded cheddar cheese in some recipes this week. I always buy blocks of cheese & shred it by hand. In my opinion, this tastes better and the cheese lasts longer in the refrigerator.



Sunday - Chili day, winter is back in Denver so chili just seemed right.  This is our chili recipe but you can substitute your own for sure.  I try to make my chili chunkier and less saucy.

2 lb ground turkey ( I use 1 lb taco seasoned, 1 lb Italian seasoned)
1 green pepper diced
1 yellow onion diced
1 28 ounce can crushed tomatoes
1 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes
1 can chili beans
1 can kidney beans in chili sauce
1 Tbsp paprika
1 Tbsp chili powder
Salt and pepper to taste

Toppings
Shredded cheddar cheese
Diced jalapenos

Monday- Chicken fajita meat in sweet potato boat

http://bzfd.it/2lFrfQo

Tuesday-Sweet potato and spinach zoodle

http://pinchofyum.com/sweet-potato-noodles
Note: I add chicken that has been thinly slice and marinated in either an Italian or Asian marinade to make the dish seem more satisfying.











Wednesday- Open faced BBQ Chicken with broccoli salad

 BBQ Chicken
1lb chicken boneless/skinless chicken thighs
1lb chicken breast
1/2 jar Stubbs original barbecue sauce (this is the lowest sugar/ calorie bbq sauce i can find)

Simply toss chicken in sauce and cook in crock-pot on low for 8 hours.  Shred chicken and serve open faced on half a bakery roll.  Top with cheese and additional BBQ sauce if desired.

Broccoli salad 
5 Cups Raw Broccoli Florets, chopped
½ Cup Red Onion, chopped
½ Cup Shredded Cheese (optional)
1 Cup Turkey Bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 Cup Raw Sunflower Seeds
1 Cup Dried Cranberries
-Dressing-
 ¾ Cup Mayonnaise
 2 Tablespoons Red Wine Vinegar
 ¼ Teaspoon Pepper

Combine all salad ingredients in a large mixing bowl; mix well. Combine dressing ingredients in a small mixing bowl.

Mix until thoroughly combined using a fork or wire whisk. Add dressing to salad and mix well. Refrigerate 1 hour.



Thursday- Cashew Chicken with cauliflower rice

1 lb chicken breast in 1 inch cubes or thinly sliced
1 cup carrot chips
1 cup mushrooms
1 cup cashews
3 green onions
3 cloves minced garlic
2 tsp grated fresh ginger
-Sauce-
3 Tbsp Hoisin sauce
1 Tbsp low sodium soy sauce
1 Tbsp honey
1 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
1 tsp corn starch
1/4 c water

Step 1 - Marinade chicken cubes in teriyaki marinade for atleast 30 min
Step 2 - Whisk together all of the sauce ingredients
Step 3 - Melt 1 Tbsp coconut oil in skillet, add chicken to hot oil.  Cook on medium/high heat until chicken is browned on outside and fully cooked inside.  Remove from pan, next add another Tbsp coconut oil and saute carrot chips and cashews.  Add the mushrooms and green onion during the last two minutes of sauteing.  Once all vegetables are cooked add the cooked chicken and the sauce, combine all ingredients together and set aside while heated cauliflower rice than pour on top.

Cauliflower rice

http://cookeatpaleo.com/how-to-make-cauliflower-rice/

Chiropractor Westminster

You probably remember your mom or your teachers getting after you for slouching and telling you to sit up straight. And you were probably annoyed by their insistence, but did you know that posture is, in reality, a huge part of your spinal health? As our chiropractor in Westminster will tell you, posture, and more importantly, your ability to maintain posture speaks volumes about the health of your bones and muscles and predicts your likelihood of developing back or neck problems and suffering from the resulting pain. At Optimal Health Chiropractic our expert chiropractor in Westminster can run a posture and spinal screening to check out the health of your spine and offer solutions to fix whatever problems the test may reveal.

You can even arrange a screening at your event or workplace. Our chiropractor in Westminster will be glad to come and offer spinal screenings and even bring along the ever popular chair massage. Office workers are particularly in danger of developing spinal problems due to bad posture and spending so much time sitting at a desk. Your employees will be thankful to see that their boss is concerned for their health and happiness, and healthier employees bring in better results. Win-win!

For more information about Optimal Health Chiropractic visit our website at http://www.broomfieldchirocare.com/

Back Pain Chiropractic Care Westminster

Back pain can be an indicator of many different issues that a person could be experiencing. If you experience frequent or constant back pain our chiropractic care in Westminster may be able to pinpoint the root cause and offer you natural ways to work on healing it. When you come to Optimal Health Chiropractic complaining of back pain for chiropractic care in Westminster we can use our Spinal Analyzing Machine to examine your spine and back and see if we can find the source of your pain. In today’s society, people spend much more time sitting and being less active and those factors mixed with bad posture can spell disaster for your joints and muscles. Over time they get weaker and weaker, increasing your chances of other, more serious, injuries.

Most of the time we can significantly reduce or even cure back pain with chiropractic care in Westminster so you owe it to yourself to come and see us. Why live with nagging pain if you don’t have to? Our methods are much more natural and holistic than traditional doctors and work in harmony with your body’s natural healing process so you don’t have anything to lose.

For more information about Optimal Health Chiropractic visit our website at http://www.broomfieldchirocare.com/

Chiropractic Clinic Westminster

Do you suffer from constant or nagging pain in your back, limbs, joints, or head? If you do, it is very possible that you can benefit from our chiropractic clinic in Westminster. We here at Optimal Health Chiropractic hold a philosophy of natural healing and working with your body’s natural processes in order to fix issues and give you a higher standard of health while minimizing daily aches and pains. Our chiropractic clinic in Westminster can help in a variety of circumstances whether you have been injured in a car accident or as a result of a sports or work injury. We can even help pregnant women find a bit of relief by helping them to be more comfortable during the most taxing stages of pregnancy.

Understanding why you are experiencing pain is absolutely critical to its proper treatment. We focus on teaching our clients preventative measures and how to foster good, natural habits that will protect them over a lifetime far better than frequent (and expensive) trips to the doctor can. Even bring your kids to our chiropractic clinic in Westminster. We welcome working with kids as that is the best age to start building healthy habits.

For more information about Optimal Health Chiropractic visit our website at http://www.broomfieldchirocare.com/

Chiropractor Westminster

Looking for a chiropractor near Westminster, Colorado that has a natural wellness approach to health care? Look no further for you have found us here at Optimal Health Chiropractic. Our philosophy here is that the body is usually able to heal itself when given the optimal conditions to do that, so our chiropractor in Westminster will seek to find those conditions for your particular issue and help your body heal itself naturally. This approach is much cheaper than surgery and much healthier than potentially helpful but also harmful drugs and depending on your situation can yield much better results.

Our chiropractor in Westminster is also committed to ongoing education, believing that if people know how to effectively care for themselves many infirmities can be reversed or even prevented altogether with the proper self care over a lifetime. We want to help our community as much as we can and our goal is that the people in our community will live healthy, happy lives without unnecessary physical infirmities dragging them down. To show our commitment we offer after hours appointments for those who are unable to make it during our regular business hours and encourage parents to bring their children so we can begin the education process early.

For more information about Optimal Health Chiropractic visit our website at http://www.broomfieldchirocare.com/index.html

Chiropractor Westminster

Chiropractic work is extremely effective and if you are suffering from virtually any type of ache or pain, our highly skilled chiropractor near Westminster would be able to help you and alleviate your suffering. Whether you have frequent or intense headaches, joint issues, back, neck, shoulder or wrist pain, numbness or pain in the arms or legs, or have received an injury while participating in a sporting event or from being in an auto accident our chiropractor near Westminster at should be able to help you.

Here at Optimal Health Chiropractic we hold the philosophy that naturally working with your body to heal itself is better than expensive (and potentially harmful) drugs or surgery. We don’t completely rule out those medical helps out because sometimes they can be very helpful, but very often your body just needs a little jumpstart to get on the road to healing itself. Our focus is very much customer service driven, so much so that if you are unable to come to our office during our regular business hours we will schedule a special appointment for you in the evening or on the weekend. Start living pain free today with help from our chiropractor near Westminster.

For more information about Optimal Health Chiropractic visit our website at http://www.broomfieldchirocare.com/

Chiropractor Westminster

Do you find that you have nagging pains in your back, neck, wrists or other joints in your body? Maybe you were injured in a car accident or suffered a sports injury recently or even quite a while ago but are still dealing with the lingering effects. If this is you then there is a chiropractor in the Westminster area that you should go see because it is very possible that you don't have to keep on living with those pains—or taking a lot of potentially damaging pain medication just to manage it.

The chiropractors at Optimal Health Chiropractic are dedicated to helping our clients live pain free lives and oftentimes achieving that goal is a lot easier than you might think. Chiropractic work offers a whole arsenal chock full of techniques, philosophies and ideas that have helped millions of people around the globe manage or eliminate lingering pains from old injuries and our chiropractors in Westminster have had all the training necessary to offer those benefits to you as well. So don't wait, you owe it to yourself to come and see our chiropractor near Westminster today so that you can start feeling your best again as soon as possible.

For more information about Optimal Health Chiropractic visit our website at http://www.broomfieldchirocare.com/

Chiropractor Westminster

A good chiropractor in Westminster in indispensable for the health of many people. Oftentimes chiropractic work is overlooked as a viable option for treatment but there is a wide variety of ailments that we can help with, and offer much better solutions than a general physician. We here at Optimal Health Chiropractic are in business to help you reach a state of optimal health and we do so by avoiding expensive surgery or potentially harmful medications as much as possible. We want to work with your body naturally and effectively to restore it to an optimally functioning state.

So what are some of the things that our chiropractor in Westminster can help you with? We are so glad you asked. We can help with back, shoulder, neck or wrist pain and arm or leg pain or numbness. Also we can help your body recover from the impact of being in a car collision or sustaining a sports or work injury. Plus we are welcoming to children and infants who may be in need of chiropractic care. We can even help women have a more comfortable pregnancy! There are so many things that a good chiropractor in Westminster can help with that most people probably aren’t even aware of.

For more information about Optimal Health Chiropractic visit our website at http://www.broomfieldchirocare.com/

Chiropractor Westminster

Do you find that you have nagging back, shoulder, neck or wrist pain? Maybe you are constantly battling annoying headaches or even experiencing arm or leg pain or numbness. Or maybe you were just injured in a car accident or sustained a sports injury. Whatever the reason you’ll be looking for a good chiropractor near Westminster, Colorado. Be sure to come and check us out at Optimal Health Chiropractic. We have established ourselves as being a great chiropractor in Westminster and we are able to help people with a variety of issues--among them those already listed and even helping women have a more comfortable pregnancy.

Our philosophy is that people should have access to solid natural healing techniques and they will then lead happier, pain free lives. If the situation calls for it we will use or recommend medicines or surgery but we try to avoid that as much as possible. We think that a good chiropractor in Westminster should be able to offer alternative solutions to expensive surgery and without the side effects of synthetic drugs. If you are interested in natural healing for whatever you find ailing you, then go ahead and give us a call today.

For more information about Optimal Health Chiropractic visit our website at http://www.broomfieldchirocare.com/

Chiropractor Westminster

Unfortunately once in a while you can find yourself victim of a car accident or sports injury or even a simple fall. If and when that happens, and you live nearby, you should check out this top notch chiropractor in Westminster. Optimal Health Chiropractic is always concerned with what is best for your optimal health. They even give you a list of helpful tips to assist you in preventing injury before an accident of whatever sort occurs if you have the ability to do so. How many companies do you see that care so much about your health that they are helping you avoid visits to their chiropractor office in Westminster just because they care about your health on the whole.

Whiplash is a big problem, particularly among victims of car crashes and the like where the patient’s head can be jostled sharply back and forth and without exception the chiropractors in Westminster see many injuries of this type. The best thing that you can do for yourself to help prevent injury is (if you see it early enough, of course) by bracing your entire body against the seat back and particularly the headrest to protect your neck. But if you do find yourself in need of our services give us a call today.

For more information please visit our website at http://www.broomfieldchirocare.com/