This recipe is a great alternative to mashed potatoes or pasta. Cauliflower is low in fat and carbs and is a very nutritionally dense food. It also contains many phytochemicals which may help you reduce your risk for certain cancers. These are just a few of the benefits of eating cauliflower, making it far superior to a regular potato, white rice or enriched pasta. Even if you are not a fan of cauliflower give this recipe just one try. Many have tried it and don’t even know it’s cauliflower.

Ingredients
1 large head of Cauliflower, cut into florets with stems
2 tbsp Olive Oil
1 tbsp Unsalted Butter
1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
1/2 tsp Salt
1/4 tsp Black Pepper
1/2 tsp Chili Powder
1/3 cup Grated Parmesean Cheese
1/3 Cup Whole Milk

Heat oil and butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Place cauliflower florets with stems in a food processor. Pulse until cauliflower is very fine, almost like bread crumbs. Once skillet is hot add cauliflower, salt, garlic powder, pepper, and chili powder.  Stir and cook until cauliflower is medium golden brown, stir to make sure it does not burn but you do want a slight caramel color to start on the bottom. After the cauliflower is cooked return it to the food processor. Add the parmesean cheese and milk. Blend the mixture til creamy, salt and pepper to taste if necessary.

Nutrition (Per Serving, 6 Servings)

Calories     126.8
Total Fat     8.8 g
Saturated Fat     3.2 g
Polyunsaturated Fat     0.6 g
Monounsaturated Fat     4.4 g
Cholesterol     10.6 mg
Sodium     347.6 mg
Potassium     438.6 mg
Total Carbohydrate     8.4 g
Dietary Fiber 3.6 g
Sugars     0.7 g
Protein     5.6 g
Vitamin A     4.3 %
Vitamin B-12     1.3 %
Vitamin B-6     16.6 %
Vitamin C     108.6 %
Vitamin D     1.4 %
Vitamin E     3.5 %
Calcium     12.5 %
Copper    3.2 %
Folate     20.1 %
Iron         4.2 %
Magnesium     6.1 %
Manganese     11.6 %
Niacin     3.9 %
Pantothenic Acid  9.4 %
Phosphorus    10.8 %
Riboflavin     6.6 %
Selenium     3.4 %
Thiamin     5.6 %

Congratulations to Mr. Jackson on the launch of this fantastic publication! I look forward to contributing in the many editions to come. Also, I would like to give kudos to Maria Orozova and her team at The MOD Studio for designing a fantastic online layout.

Enjoy reading Influential Magazine at www.influential-magazine.com.

Kyle Golden
Founder of Work It Personal Training

Is your goal to gain lean muscle mass (muscle hypertrophy) and you are working out more frequently with more intensity than ever before; yet you are stuck at a plateau or have possibly even lost strength or weight?

The problem could be that your workouts are too intense and frequent.  Recently a study was performed on two groups of rats to see what the effects of intense training and recovery time would be on muscle hypertrophy or atrophy (muscle growth or loss respectively).  The only variable difference between the two groups was the recovery time between training sessions. The data collected in the study showed that the group with “high-intensity resistance training with insufficient recovery time between bouts promoted muscle atrophy.”1

This is all dependent on the intensity of your workouts. The more intense your workout the greater your recovery time will need to be for your muscles to repair and rebuild.  It is easy to think that the process of gaining muscle mass occurs while you are performing resistance training; however, the workout is actually the first phase of the hypertrophy process.  The first phase is stressing the muscle enough to break it down to the cellular level.  In order to begin gaining muscle there must be adequate recovery time to allow the muscle fibers to rebuild.  It is during the second phase, the resting period between workouts, which allow the muscle fibers to repair.  Some studies have produced data stating that depending on the intensity of the workout the muscle fibers can potentially require 24-72 hours to complete the rebuilding process.

What should you do? Make sure you are allowing yourself the required rest time to rebuild your muscle fibers so you can continue to meet your goals. Don’t try to rush the process by training hard everyday with little to no off days. This would be considered over-training. Remember, generally the harder you train the more time it may take for you to recover.

The new location will be located in the Domain at 11600 Century Oaks Terrace between Palm Way and Agave Lane. Click here for the store specific website to keep up with them. Also, follow their community calendar for free in-store Saturday yoga classes!

Upon graduation from Texas Tech, Adam decided to bring his talents to Austin, where he received his Juris Doctorate from the University of Texas; however, Adam’s heart was not in law, it was still in the weight room. Now, Adam is a certified trainer through the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) and joined the Work It Personal Training team this July.

“I enjoy making a difference in the life of someone, whether it is an athlete looking to obtain a higher vertical jump or an individual looking to workout for the very first time. It is an amazing feeling to change a person’s life in a positive way.”

Source: Food and Drug Administration

Work It Personal Training welcomes a new member, Summer Rose, to our qualified personal training staff. Although Summer is new to Work It, she isn’t unfamiliar with personal fitness. Kyle Golden, owner of Work It says “I have known Summer for a few years and we are so happy to have her join our training team. Summer’s experience, expertise, and professionalism are all fantastic attributes that will add to the training programs for our clients.”

Summer is originally from Northern California, but grew up in Dallas. Upon graduating high school,Summer started college at the University of Texas at Austin, but realized California wasn’t out of her system; she then moved to California and graduated from San Jose State University.

In 2004, Summer moved back to Austin and it was then that she realized that working with people is what she loves and that working with people on their fitness goals was her next step. She launched SummerFit, LLC, in 2005 and has thoroughly enjoyed the reward of accompanying her clients on their fitness journey. Summer is excited to move on to her next venture in fitness training, “It is wonderful to be part of a team that truly values the goals and success of our clients.” Summer started the 4^th of April and has been hard at work since carrying on Work It’s motivation to better peoples’ health.

Welcome to Work It Summer!

By Shane Whitehead, Work It Trainer

So you may have read my previous blog posts about the Vibram Five Fingers and the basic concept behind barefoot running. If not, you may want to (Vibram Review 1, Vibram Review 2). Maybe you are interested but you just can’t push yourself to start wearing those “monkey feet” shoes. Well other shoemakers know just how you feel and wanted to jump on the wagon with their own minimalist footwear. I took the opportunity to go try out a few of the different options currently available to give you the pros and cons of each. Hopefully this will help you find a pair that you will enjoy most so you can start to reap the benefits of barefoot running.

Here are a few things to know about minimalist shoes before I get into my reviews. First is heel drop, what this means is that the heel of the shoe is elevated higher than the front. Most barefoot shoes try to get as close to a zero heel drop as possible so that it feels more natural. Having the heel elevated encourages people to land on their heel while running which isn’t proper and can lead to joint pain. The next thing you see common with minimalist shoes is a very thin outer sole and little to no cushion or arch support. This will give you a direct feel of the ground. You will feel more “spring” in your step while running, assuming you’re using correct running form. Also important is the width of the shoe. Most minimalist shoes are very wide in the front to allow your toes to fan out naturally and also help with balance and ankle stability. You basically want to feel like you aren’t wearing a shoe at all.

Merrell Trail Glove/Merrell True Glove (REI $110)
Before I tried these on I was pretty excited about them. They advertise a zero heel drop with a flexible sole and wide toe box. Also they put a 1mm plate under the ball of the foot for protection from sharp rocks or other objects that may hurt to step on. As soon as I tried them on they felt strange, the width in the toe box was fine but it felt like balls of my feet were elevated slightly (due to the plate I assume). After wearing my Vibram Five Fingers it felt very unnatural to me. The shoe itself also felt a little stiff and wasn’t as flexible as I had imagined. Although I didn’t particularly like the shoe, I do think it would be the best option to learn proper running form as the elevated forefoot will discourage you from landing on your heel. Aside from that, I feel they would be awkward doing any activity other than running.

Terra Plana Vivobarefoot Evo (Luke’s Locker $160)
I hadn’t really heard or seen these shoes until I looked a little deeper into minimalist running options since Terra Plana is a smaller European Company. As soon as I put them on I noticed the true zero heel drop as they felt completely flat. Jogging around the store they felt very natural and flexible on my feet. I would definitely recommend these shoes.

New Balance Minimus Trail (Texas Running Co. $100)
I was at the Texas Running Company one day just browsing around when I saw these shoes. They immediately jumped out at me just by the lightweight look and extremely thin sole compared to all the other shoes around them. I asked to try them on and instantly noticed the almost complete lack of cushy padding, which I like. There is a slight heel drop (4mm) but it isn’t very noticeable. I would prefer a zero drop but the way these shoes fit my feet was amazing. The top of the shoe is mostly a mesh, breathable material with a few rubbery straps around the heel and forefoot to keep you planted. I actually bought a pair of these and I would recommend them.

After trying all these shoes I couldn’t say if I like the Terra Plana Evo or the New Balance Minimus Trail better. I would have to wear the Terra Plana Evo around more to get a true feel for them. I would advise you to go try them both out and see for yourself. I wouldn’t personally recommend the Merrells but some people may like them. As far as mimicking barefoot running, I would say they are a bit off from the other two options.

I hope this article will help anyone out who is deciding on a minimalist shoe. If you have any questions feel free to contact me at shane@workittraining.com. Thanks for reading!

Vibram FiveFinger shoes can also be found at the Texas Running Company.