Apple Seeds are poisonous?

Yes! I had heard green potatoes are toxic, but I never knew an apple seed can be harmful.

Apple seeds contain cyanogenic acids. Cherry pits, and seeds from related fruits, including peaches, plums, almonds, pears, and apricots, all contain cyanogenic glycosides. Your body can detoxify small quantities of cyanide compounds, which means if you ingest a few accidentally, your body can process the compounds without causing you harm. Chewing the seeds makes them much more hazardous for your body as the poisons are released.

How do you know you could be suffering from poison? Symptoms of mild poisoning include headache, dizziness, confusion, anxiety, and vomiting. Larger doses can lead to difficulty breathing, increased blood pressure and heart rate, and kidney failure. Reactions can include coma, convulsions, and death from respiratory arrest! There are several treatment options, but the main thing is to limit the absorption of the chemicals from the seeds.

If eating an apple or pear, just remember to cut out the core and discard; also make sure to de-core your apples and pears before juicing. If you are eating a stone fruit, don't be afraid of the seed, but don't chew or suck on it.

Healthy Apple Blueberry Crumble

Perfect dessert as the cooler months approach, this apple crumble is made with delicious toasted walnuts and coconut, juicy green apples and superfood dried blueberries. I served mine with vanilla and nutmeg coconut milk icecream.

Brooke Burke's butt workout and morning shake recipe

Brooke Burke sits firmly in place as one of my all-time-favourite fitness inspirations. She takes such good care of her body and it shows in her amazing shape and glowing skin. The 40-year-old takes her fitness seriously and I always look to her for new tips on toning, especially for the butt. While Brooke has released a workout DVD, which I plan to add to my collection, you can find some excellent express exercises to do at home by looking on you tube. I've posted my particular favourite video below, which is a butt burning series of moves that will really tone up your trouble areas. 

Brooke's breakfast contains a shake of coconut water, berries, 1 scoop of protein powder, omega oils and some kale. She blends this together every morning for a great breakfast on-the-go and she also credits this combination to keeping her skin fresh and her body lean.

For more workout tips from the actress and model, check out Fitness Magazine's list of Brooke's favourite gym exercises. 

Fitness Model's Workout and Diet Plan

Here is a sample plan of a workout schedule and diet plan to follow to achieve a fitness model physique, which won't be as bulky as a bodybuilder but will be toned and lean. For sample menu plans, click here.

Plan to workout with weights 4 days a week, and if you have some fat you need to blast, you add 2 days of cardio, no less than 25 minutes and no more than 45 minutes. For example:

Monday is always going to be Upper Body

Tuesday is always going to be Legs

Wednesday is Cardio

Thursday is Glutes and Abs

Friday is Upper Body and Legs (mini workouts)

Saturday is Cardio

Sunday is your OFF-Active Rest Day, and also Food Prep Day (grocery shopping and meal planning)

Start every workout with a warm up. Warm up simply by walking in place, then moving side to side, and then picking up the intensity to say maybe jumping jacks, and then running in place. Aim for a warm up for at least for 5 minutes.

Pick Three Exercises PER Body Part.

Perform 8-12 reps for 3 sets, at a challenging weight where the last 8-12 are hard to finish.

25 Minute Cardio Workout:

Fitness models focus on keeping their heart rates down, not allowing them to start burning off their hard earned muscle mass.

Fitness models rarely run, because this too "eats at their muscle mass," and makes them flabby.
Fitness models aim at no more than 25-to-45 minutes of cardio, unless it's time to compete, where they bump it up.

Don't run or try to embrace another form of low impact cardio. Fitness models and other professionals lean towards the "no running" principle because it's known to "eat away" at the muscle you work so hard to gain.

Don't work against yourself and defeat your progress by running. It takes a lot of energy with no real gains, except for cardiovascular. You can receive cardiovascular benefits from other low impact versions such as using the Elliptical, Nordic Track, Air Stepper, and the Stair Master.

Don't do less than 25 minutes, or more than 45 minutes. This "magic zone" between 25-to-45 burns fat. If you do more than that your body "hits a plateau" and your body "hits a wall" and you slows/stops your progress.

Don't overtrain! If you overtrain, your appetite will increase and you will start eating like a 250-pound football player and not a fitness model. Rather do just enough to blast fat, and not to hit a plateau. Again if you overtrain, your body will "lock up" and not allow you to burn the fat off that you need too, because it will reach a state of "shock," thus holding onto the fat.

Sample Meal Plan:

Meal 1 (Breakfast): 5 egg whites + 1 yolk, 0% plain Greek yogurt
Meal 2 (Post Workout): Protein shake
Meal 3 (Lunch): 1 chicken breast, sliced over spinach salad + tomatoes, red onions, snow peas (no dressing)
Meal 4 (Afternoon): Almonds, chopped veggies
Meal 5 (Dinner): chicken stir fry
Meal 6 (Evening): 0% cottage cheese with pepper OR 0% plain Greek yogurt OR protein shake.

For more meal plans, click here

For sweet treats, try these recipes:

• Carb-free banana pancakes
• Chickpea Blondies
• Sugar-free Protein Rocky Road

Flourless Coconut Chocolate Protein Pancakes

This was a treat for Easter Sunday breakfast so naturally these pancakes had some luxurious sprinkles of chocolate scattered through them. I added my favorite pea protein powder and some coconut flour, which makes these pancakes gluten-free and low in sugar. If you are using a good non-stick fry pan, flipping your pancakes will be easy. If you don't want to use chocolate drops, try adding blueberries.

Flourless Coconut Chocolate Protein Pancakes

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 3 eggs, lightly whisked
• 1 large mashed banana
• 1/4 cup of coconut flour
• 1/2 cup of soy milk
• 2 scoops of protein powder
• 3 tablespoons of dairy-free sugar-free dark chocolate drops
• 3 tablespoons of stevia sweetener powder
• 1 teaspoon of coconut oil

Directions:

1. Mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl until combined. 
2. Heat up a large non-stick fry pan and spray with coconut oil.
3. Pour an even amount of pancake mixture into the pan (my pan could fit four at a time).
4. Cook on a medium heat until the edges of the pancake start to peel from the pan. When this happens, carefully flip each pancake using a rubber spatula.
5. Cook on the other side for a few more minutes until cooked through.
6. Serve with low-fat Greek yoghurt and berries.

Sugar-free Chocolate Hearts for Easter

This treat is the perfect alternative to traditional chocolate and sweets at Easter time. Sugar-free and packed with healthy fats, your friends and family (and you!) will love these 'chocolate' skinny treats. Super easy to make and quick to set, you can prepare these in just over 30 minutes. The ingredients are quite flexible in amounts and you can be creative with what nut butters or flavours you would like to add or change.

I used a delicious coconut cashew cream I bought from a health food store here in Brisbane. If you can't find this (I've added a picture in the post), just add more almond butter and coconut oil. I froze my chocolates in a heart shaped silicone mould, and added some little berries into each one. Try adding desiccated coconut, orange zest or cinnamon for different flavours.

This recipe is inspired from the 'I Quit Sugar' cookbook from Sarah Wilson.

Sugar-free Cacao Coconut Hearts

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons of almond butter
• 2 tablespoons of coconut cashew cream
• 3 tablespoons of coconut oil
• 1 tablespoon of powdered cacao
• 1 tablespoon of Natvia
• 2 tablespoons of small frozen berries

Method:

1. Combine all ingredients, except the berries, in a small mixing bowl. If the ingredients are quite cold, you may need to microwave on low for 10 or so seconds, just to make sure the ingredients easily combine.
2. Spoon the mixture into your silicone moulds about 3/4 full. If you don't have a mould, you can spread the mixture flat onto a tray lined with baking paper and cut into squares when frozen. In this case, add the berries into the mixture before pouring onto tray.
3. Top with frozen berries and drizzle remaining mixture over each mould to cover. 
4. Freeze for 30 minutes, until solid. 
5. Pop out each chocolate and store in an airtight container in the freezer.
6. To serve, remove 5 minutes before eating.

Sneaky sources of sugar

Okay so we all know that we should limit our sugar intake. Your body turns sugar immediately into fat, which is exactly what we don't want! When you think sugar, you think cupcakes, candy, ice-cream and cookies, right? But many seemingly healthy ingredients in our pantry are made of as much sugar as a chocolate bar. Make sure you have counted these food staples as sugar culprits.

Sneaky sources of sugar:

• Asian sauces such as Hoisin Sauce are made mostly of brown sugar.
• BBQ sauce is 55% sugar, which is more than chocolate topping.
• Tomato sauce * I have included a recipe below for your own sugar-free tomato sauce :)
• Low-fat foods eg. low-fat mayonnaise. Low-fat foods often have the fat replaced with sugar.
• Breakfast cereals - 99% very high in sugar. Best to use oats.
• Muesli bars - including anything that has dried fruit, honey or yoghurt. 
• Yoghurts - full-fat Greek yoghurt is best.
• Vegetable juices - carrot and beetroot are still quite high in sugar foods. Obviously fruit juices are a no go. 

Read your food labels. Ignore the per serve label as it is often not accurate. For example, a can of soft drink will often say two-three serves. Look at per 100 grams, in solid foods should be under 3 grams (except dairy products, which should have under 8 grams because the lactose will increase the sugar content). You will find this eliminates a large section of your grocery store... but you can replace many of these ingredients with home made versions. 

Is chocolate ever okay? Chocolate is not addictive, it is the sugar that is the addictive part. Even 80% cocoa chocolate still has a high sugar content. Sugar-free chocolate is manufactured with chemicals, which are also harmful for your body. Essentially, there is no chocolate that is low in sugar. Try making your own healthy treats with cacao powder. 

Fruit is okay as long as it is limited to two small pieces a day. Berries are the best choice of fruit because they are the lowest in fruit. Apples, bananas and grapes are the highest in sugar. 

These rules are very strict , and I couldn't follow them exactly on every day, but it is a good reminder to limit these foods, especially those you weren't aware contained such large amount of sugar.

Homemade Sugar-free Tomato Sauce

Ingredients

12 oz. tomato paste

4 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1 Tablespoon mustard

1/4 cup+2 Tablespoons water

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon cloves

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Instructions

Combine all ingredients and whisk until combined. You may wish to blend in order to ensure the spices are evenly mixed throughout.

It is best to let the ketchup sit together in the fridge for a couple of hours, or overnight, before serving so that the flavors blend together well.

Store in an airtight container in fridge.

Notes

Check the ingredients of your tomato paste. The only item listed should be tomatoes.