LUCY LIU'S PILATES PINS LOOK FABOLOUS AT 44

Movie & TV actress Lucy Liu dishes the dirt on her exercise routine that makes her look like a twenty-something instead of her actual 44 years. 

 "I'm smarter, stronger and more confident than I was in my twenties", says Liu, in the US Fitness magazine that came out this week. 

The top photo of Lucy showing her toned and trim legs featured in the magazine, with Liu accrediting her slender physique to regular Pilates classes.  "Ten years of Pilates has really changed my body for the better," the magazine cover model raves. The exercise routine "introduced me to muscles I never even knew I had." For anyone who has tried Pilates, I bet you are in total agreement with that last sentence! 

The gorgeous actress also combines workouts and her TV shows to stay in shape. "I don't always, but I can do Pilates at home with a ball and I have a treadmill.  I run or do Pilates while watching Downtown Abbey!" Whatever works with your busy schedule! 

The Charlie's Angel actress believes that it is very important to have a support group of friends to keep you motivated.  "A group of five of us, friends and friends of friends, have an e-mail chain going and we all set goals: an ideal weight, inches we wanted to lose, eating habits we wanted to adopt. We'd e-mail saying, 'I ran today.' Or 'I ate this,' and we'd share recipes. Then we'd celebrate by going to a show or taking a group Pilates class when each of us reached our goals. We also celebrated mini milestones along the way to keep our motivation up." Such a simple but excellent idea for holding yourself and others accountable to their health & fitness goals. 

Want to engage muscles that you never knew you had? Looking to tone the parts of your body that you cannot seem to with any other form of exercise? Call Premium Pilates today on 0402 680 724 or visit us online at premiumpilatesstudio.com. 

x Emily 

MINI CHICKEN CAKES

Such an easy recipe that is tasty hot or cold. Just be careful as these cakes are very moreish and you will end up eating 4-5 per person. Great for a snack at work or for kids for school lunches. Make sure you buy a nice chicken mince and feel free to add whatever herbs you like; chives work nicely as would parsley or basil. The sweet chilli sauce is just an optional sauce, as I found the cakes were flavourful enough on their own. My only regret with this recipe is that I did not use 1kg of mince and make 18 instead of 9.

INGREDIENTS

• 500g chicken mince (preferably free-range)
• 1/4 medium red onion, finely chopped
• 1 cup baby spinach, washed & drained, roughly chopped
• 1 egg, lightly beaten (preferably free-range)
• 2 heaped tablespoons fresh chives, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon lemon pepper seasoning 
• a pinch of sea salt & coconut oil for greasing
• Optional- sweet chilli sauce 

COOKING 

1. Preheat a fan-force oven to 180 degrees celsius. Prepare 9-10 muffin holes (1/2 cup /125ml deep) by lightly greasing with coconut oil. 

2. Pour all ingredients into a food processor (except the sweet chilli sauce) and process for a few seconds until smooth and well combined. Spoon mixture evenly into prepared muffin holes. 

3. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until mini cakes are golden and firm. If using chicken mince that has just been thawed the baking time may slightly increase. Serve on a bed of baby spinach and tomato with sweet chilli sauce on the side, if you desire. 

Serve / 2-3 per person 

Total Preparation time / 15 minutes 

Total Cooking time / 35-40 minutes 

x Emily

MISO STEAK with VEGE STACK

Steak is something that I didn't used to really love to eat, but I know I need to eat to keep my iron levels from plummeting to an anemic level. Therefore I am often searching for ways to make red meat appetising for myself. On a lunch and movie date with my mother a few years ago she suggested that I try marinating steak with miso paste. I was intrigued and went home to do just that. The steak marinade was salty, moreish and light and before I knew it the meat had disappeared from my plate. I think my partner was secretly upset, as it was the first time that he was not begged to help me finish my steak. What a catch-22 for him; nicer steak but less for him to eat! 

INGREDIENTS

Miso Steak

• 350-400g lean eye fillet steak, cut into two even sized pieces (or approx. 150g for a woman, 200-250g for a man)
• 1 1/2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1 garlic clove, crushed or finely chopped 
• 1 heaped tablespoon miso paste 
• 1 teaspoon rice bran oil 
• al foil 

Vege Stack

• 1 green capsicum, membrane & seeds removed, cut into 6 slices
• 1 large tomato, cut into 6 slices 
• 1/2 an avocado, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar 
• Optional - fresh basil leaves 

COOKING 

1. Combine all the steak ingredients except for the oil and al foil and leave to marinate in the refrigerator for a minimum of 10 minutes. 

2. Whilst the steak is marinading, assemble your vege stacks. 

3. Heat the oil in a medium frypan over medium-high heat. Cook the steak for around 3 minutes on each side, allowing a little more cooking time for the bigger steak on each side. Remove from the pan and loosely cover the steak with al foil for 5 minutes. 

4. Steak the two steaks alongside the vege stack, which can be drizzled with balsamic vinegar and topped off with a fresh basil leaf or two, if desired. 

Serves / 2 

Total Preparation time / 15 minutes plus 30 minutes refrigeration time 

Total Cooking time / 30 minutes 

x Emily 

PILATES CURES AFL CARLTON PLAYER JARRAD WAITE'S BACK PAIN

Carlton forward Jarrad Waite suffered debilitating back problems during the 2012 AFL season, however he has an annoucement to make; he is fitter than ever and ready for the 2013 season. When asked what the secret to his recovery was, Waite revealed that it was none other than the exercise regime Pilates! 

Jarrad has worked hard to strengthen his core muscles with twice-weekly Pilates classes. The Blues forward informs that this form of exercise and rehabilitation has been able to correct the abdominal weakness at the heart of his severe disc injury. 

"My core wasn't the strongest (and it) basically put a lot of force through my back and then it just sort of gave up," Waite told the Herald Sun recently. 

"It was very disappointing because I've had a frustrating few years with hip injuries and it will be good to get through a season without any issues...I know I have a lot to offer for the team and when you are on the sidelines you are useless."

"Pilates is going well and it's something that I enjoy doing".

After the 29-year-old 'squashed' a disc in his spine during Round 8 of the 2012 AFL competition forcing him out of the rest of the season, he may have thought his AFL days were numbered. Due to his committment to Pilates, however, Waite has been able to take on a "full-on" training load as the 2013 AFL season gets closer. Jarrad remarks that this is his first full pre-Christmas training schedule in about five years, due to the nightmare injuries he has dealt with in the past. 

 "It's (training) is going really well, and I just can't wait for the season to start". Hopefully this year will continue to be injury-free for you Jarrad! Keep the Pilates up! 

Suffering from a debilitating injury that does not seem to get any better? Want to improve your sport? Try Pilates today! Call Premium Pilates Studio on 0402 680 724 or visit us online at premiumpilatestudio.com today! 

x Emily 

ORANGE, CINNAMON & CHIA SEED BALLS

Another balls recipe! My ‘Vegan Date Ball’ recipe in January was my very first hand at trying to make this sweet natural snack that is swiftly popping up everywhere. The second time around I wanted a moister mixture with a little more flavouring, hence the orange juice and orange zest. Once again, a good friend gave me this idea when she suggested I add some citrus into the date mixture – lemon juice and zest or even lime would also go nicely. A small amount of juice and zest goes a long way and whilst you can taste the citrus hints it is by no way overpowering. Chia seeds are my flavour of the month- they are going on my muesli, salads and sweets. If you haven’t heard about them have a look at the January ‘Antipasto Salad with Buffalo Mozzarella’ which lists some huge benefits of consuming these little seeds.

 

INGREDIENTS

• 300g dates
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 3 tablespoons almond meal, plus extra to cover balls
• 1 teaspoon orange zest
• 2 tablespoons orange juice
• 1 heaped tablespoon chia seeds 
• 40g macadamia nuts, finely chopped

PREPARATION 

1. Process the dates in a food processor until minced. You may need to add water if the date mixture is too thick, however only add a dash of water at a time. Add cinnamon and almond meal and gently process until just combined. Mix the chia seeds, orange juice, orange zest and macadamia nuts into the date mixture by stirring. Roll the mixture into even shaped balls and have a separate plate ready to roll balls in almond meal. Cover and refrigerate for a few hours until set. Store in the refrigerator. 

Makes / 15-16 

Total Preparation time / 15 minutes 

x Emily 

RAMEN NOODLE SOUP

Continuing on my noodle journey, I explored the Japanese noodle dish Ramen last night. As the weather has cooled down ever so slightly at night (for this week at least) I decided some soup would be delightful to slurp whilst sitting in the wind on my patio. Ramen is a wheat noodle which is usually served as a broth or soup and is flavoured with miso soup or soy sauce. Adding broccoli to a ramen dish may have the Japanese turning up their noses, as green onions, seaweed, sliced pork and even corn are the most popular toppings. But to hell with convention. My broccoli’s expiration date was coming up and it added so much-needed vitamins and iron to the dish. This was an extremely simple soup to make and one of the stand out dishes I have made recently. If the weather is cooling down where you are, give it a try!

INGREDIENTS

• 270g ramen noodles
• 1 head broccoli, cut into even-sized florets
• 1 1/2 cups bean sprouts
• 1/2 teaspoon dried chilli flakes
• 6 cups chicken or vegetable stock, preferably Massel brand 
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce 
• 2 heaped tablespoons sesame seeds, plus 1 teaspoon sprinkled on each serving 
• 20g dried shallots

COOKING 

1. Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil. Add ramen noodles and cook, stirring occasionally, for 4-5 minutes or until tender. Drain noodles with cold water in a colander, reserving boiling water in a large serving bowl.  After making sure that the boiling water equals 6 cups water, add stock powder and stir well. Place noodles in the hot stock (if using ready-made stock, you do not need to reserve the boiling water- but note that ready-made stock is much dearer to buy!). 

2. Meanwhile, steam broccoli until just tender. (If you have a steamer this is very easy, however if you do not bring a small saucepan of water to the boil, place a colander above the water with the broccoli florets and cover with the saucepan lid. Steam until just tender. Add broccoli to the soup. 

3. Add bean sprouts, chilli flakes, 2 tablespoons sesame seeds and soy sauce to the soup. Stir gently to combine. Pour soup into four deep bowls and sprinkle each serving with 1 teaspoon sesame seeds and 5g dried shallots. Serve warm. 

Serves / 4 

Total Preparation time / 5 minutes 

Total Cooking time / 15 minutes maximum 

x Emily