This recipe is a 3-in-1 special by delivering a convenient, hearty and sweet snack that can also be a meal. With less than 100 calories, you can have a couple muffins between lunch and dinner for a high-protein snack, with a little chocolate to satisfy those mid-day cravings.

So easy. So healthy. And most importantly, so delicious.

Why it’s a Healthy Recipe

These banana chocolate muffins are full of fiber, healthy fats and food-sourced protein, this muffin is a macronutrient balanced on-the-go meal.

The combination of Greek yogurt and egg whites make this a great high-protein snack (if you have at least 2-3 muffins). And the fiber-packed oats are great any weight-management regime because they help slow down digestion, which keeps you feeling full for longer.

And although most oats contain gluten—gasp!—the USDA claims that oats are essential in a heart-healthy diet, lowering cholesterol and reducing the risk of coronary heart disease. (Or you could just use a gluten-free option if you have a gluten allergy.)

Banana Chocolate Muffins

Yields: 12 muffins

Cook time: 25 minutes

Difficulty: Easy

Serving size: 1 muffin

Wet ingredients

• 2 smashed extra ripe bananas, yields about 3/4 cup
• 1/4c non-fat Greek yogurt
• 1 tbsp. all-natural almond butter
• 1 tbsp. melted coconut oil (unrefined, cold-filtered)
• 1 c liquid egg whites
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp. raw, unfiltered honey

Dry ingredients

• 1/2c oat flour + 1/4c old fashion oats
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tbsp. granular sugar substitute*
• ¼ tsp. sea salt
• 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/4c slivered almonds
• 2 tbsp. dark chocolate chips**

*We used Swerve, erythritol-based sugar substitute.

**We used Enjoy Life dairy-, soy- and nut-free, semi-sweet chocolate chips.

 Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a muffin pan with 12 paper liners.
2. To make the oat flour simply add ½ cup of oats to a blender and pulse until smooth.
3. In a large mixing bowl, add all wet ingredients, and stir until combined. In another bowl, mix together all the dry ingredients. Then add in the dry bowl to the wet bowl, and mix until well combined. Gently fold in the whole oats, chocolate chips and almond slivers.
5. Divide the batter into the paper liners, about ½ to ¾ up the side, using a spoon or ice-cream scooper.
6. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove and let cool. Enjoy immediately, or store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week, or freeze.

Nutritional Information & Macros

Dietary Information: Vegetarian, No Sugar Added, Gluten-Free (if gluten-free oats are used), Kosher

Macros per serving (1 muffin)

• 87 calories
• 3.6g fat
• 9.3g carbs
• 6g protein

The post Healthy Recipes: Banana Chocolate Muffins appeared first on Born Fitness.

And then there are those that recreate the category by taking a favorite food and bring it to life in liquid form. Enter your new favorite healthy snack: the pumpkin pie protein shake.

Why It’s a Healthy Recipe

Pumpkin is an underrated nutrition powerhouse. It’s packed with fiber, cancer-fighting carotenoids, and more potassium than a banana.

This version of pumpkin pie takes your favorite flavors, removes the heavy cream and loads of sugar, and creates the protein-packed version in a glass.

And while the flavor is great, it’s the added benefits that make it worth your while. Pumpkin is an underrated nutrition powerhouse. It’s packed with fiber, cancer-fighting carotenoids, and more potassium than a banana.

This is a perfect post-workout shake, providing natural carbohydrates to refuel your energy, protein to build your muscle tissue, and a little healthy fat from the coconut milk and chia seed to keep you full and satisfied. Plus, the potassium in the pumpkin and banana will replenish those electrolytes lost after an intense training session. 

Ingredients

• 1 c unsweetened coconut milk*
• 1/3 c pumpkin puree
• 1/4c old-fashioned oats
• ½ frozen banana
• ½ tbsp chia seed
• ¼ tsp pumpkin pie spice*
• ¼ tsp cinnamon
• 1.5 scoop protein powder***
• 5 drops Stevia Drops, vanilla crème flavor****
• 3 ice cubes

 *Milk substitutions—almond, low-fat, soy, rice—will work too, but the consistency will not be as thick.

**If you don’t have pumpkin pie spice on hand, add a dash of each the following: cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, allspice.

***The best flavors for this recipe are graham cracker (yes, they make delicious flavor), vanilla, cinnamon swirl or unflavored.

****You can sub this with ½ tsp Stevia and ¼ tsp vanilla extract

Directions

1. Add all ingredients into the blender, and pulse until smooth.
2. Enjoy immediately. Makes one awesome serving.

Nutritional Information & Macros

Dietary Information: Dairy/Lactose free, Gluten free (if gluten-free oats are used), No added sugar (natural sugars in fruit), Vegetarian, Vegan (if Vegan protein used),

Macros per shake (one serving)

• 387 calories
• 9g fat
• 40g carbs
• 37g protein

The post Pumpkin Pie Protein Shake appeared first on Born Fitness.

This recipe for avocado tuna salad, created by Liv Langdon, Born Fitness meal prep specialist and founder of Liv Out Loud, is as easy on the wallet as much as it is to make. In less than 10 minutes, you can transform the boring classic tuna salad while packing in heart-healthy monounsaturated fats from the avocado and muscle-building protein.

Enjoy the tuna salad in an tortilla and toast in the oven for 5 minutes, or add it to a bed of spinach with sliced tomatoes for a lower carb meal. For added flavor, simply top with balsamic vinaigrette.

The goal when creating an enjoyable diet isn’t to toss out your favorites; it’s to reinvent them in a way that your stomach and tastebuds can agree.

The meal also happens to be perfect for work because the acidity in the lemon will also cut down the fishy smell and taste of the tuna, so you won’t almost kill your co-worker’s nostrils when you open your meal.

Avocado Tuna Salad Ingredients

• 1 4-5-oz. can albacore tuna
• ½ ripe avocado, mashed
• ½ lemon, juiced
• ½ tsp mustard powder
• ¼ tsp granulated garlic powder
• Dash of Himalayan sea salt
• Dash of black pepper
• 2 tbsp almond slivers, toasted

Directions

1. Rinse the tuna—after opening the can, of course—under cold running water for about a minute. This helps to clean out some of the preservatives used in canning and also will help decrease that fishy smell and taste.
2. In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients except for the almond slivers.
3. Using a large fork, break up the chunks of tuna, and combine all ingredients.
4. Top with the toasted almond slivers for an added texture and nice crunchy bite.
5. Makes one serving.

Nutritional Information & Macros

Dietary Information: Gluten free, Paleo, Low carb, Pescetarian, Dairy/Lactose free, No trans fat

Macros per serving:

• 357 calories
• 19g fat
• 10g carbs
• 36.5g protein

Total breakdown of ingredients:

Tuna (4 oz.): 137 calories, 1g fat, 0g carbs, 32g protein

Avocado: 118 calories, 10g fat, 6g carbs, 1g protein

Almonds: 102 calories, 8g fat, 4g carbs, 3.5g protein

Total: 357 calories, 19g fat, 10g carbs, 36.5g protein

Adam Bornstein

Adam Bornstein is a New York Times bestselling author and the author of You Can’t Screw This Up. He is the founder of Born Fitness, and the co-founder of Arnold’s Pump Club (with Arnold Schwarzenegger) and Pen Name Consulting. An award-winning writer and editor, Bornstein was previously the Chief Nutrition Officer for Ladder, the Fitness and Nutrition editor for Men’s Health, Editorial Director at LIVESTRONG.com, and a columnist for SHAPE, Men’s Fitness, and Muscle & Fitness. He’s also a nutrition and fitness advisor for LeBron James, Cindy Crawford, Lindsey Vonn, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. According to The Huffington Post, Bornstein is “one of the most inspiring sources in all of health and fitness.” His work has been featured in dozens of publications, including The New York Times, Fast Company, ESPN, and GQ, and he’s appeared on Good Morning America, The Today Show, and E! News.

The post Avocado Tuna Salad appeared first on Born Fitness.

And yet, for some people, the ability to indulge is limited by the fear of undoing your hard work. Even if you know you should, “Enjoy these cookies,” the well-intentioned freedom and encouragement are met with resistance and stress.

If you know how to set up a balanced eating plan (think 80/20 rule), there’s no need to hold back when you eat something that isn’t healthy. And yet, most people would still prefer healthy variations that trick your taste buds into enjoying what you eat without a second thought.

Rather than buying goodies from the store—you can create your own variations (in not much time)—and still satisfy your sweet tooth without thinking anything other than, “Wow this is good.”

When I share recipes with my coaching clients, a common favorite is no-bake protein cookies. The cookie dough-like dessert is easy to make and relatively quick to prepare. And since the government is cracking down on cookie dough, this recipe will give you more peace of mind. Consider them perfect for cheat days, weekdays, the holidays, or really any day. Dig in and enjoy.

No-Bake Protein Cookies

The Ingredients

• ½ cup cashew butter
• 2 scoops protein powder (I like BioTrust because it creates a thicker batter, but other options work too)
• 1 tsp vanilla extra
• ½ cup old-fashioned oats
• 1/3 cup cocoa powder
• ¼ cup ground flaxseed
• ¼ cup almond milk
• Optional: Add in some chocolate chips. This is if you want to make chocolate-chocolate chip cookies

Instructions

1. Mix all of the ingredients in a bowl. Order of operations does not matter. Mix until it forms a thick, grainy, cookie-dough like batter. You don’t want it to be too smooth or watery.
2. Set out a piece of wax paper and scoop out a spoon-sized piece of cookie-dough. Roll into a ball and place on the wax paper.
3. Place into the fridge or freezer (freezer if you want in about 20 minutes, fridge if you want to wait an hour)
4. Eat and enjoy

For the macro-conscious eaters, depending on the size of your cookies you’re looking at the following breakdown: ~140 calories, 10 grams protein, 8 grams fat, 8 grams carbs

Adam Bornstein

Adam Bornstein is a New York Times bestselling author and the author of You Can’t Screw This Up. He is the founder of Born Fitness, and the co-founder of Arnold’s Pump Club (with Arnold Schwarzenegger) and Pen Name Consulting. An award-winning writer and editor, Bornstein was previously the Chief Nutrition Officer for Ladder, the Fitness and Nutrition editor for Men’s Health, Editorial Director at LIVESTRONG.com, and a columnist for SHAPE, Men’s Fitness, and Muscle & Fitness. He’s also a nutrition and fitness advisor for LeBron James, Cindy Crawford, Lindsey Vonn, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. According to The Huffington Post, Bornstein is “one of the most inspiring sources in all of health and fitness.” His work has been featured in dozens of publications, including The New York Times, Fast Company, ESPN, and GQ, and he’s appeared on Good Morning America, The Today Show, and E! News.

The post Healthy Recipes: No-bake Protein Cookies appeared first on Born Fitness.