Mike Cheliak: Photography, Fitness, Nutrition and Life

A Spicy Love Affair

First of all…get your minds out of the gutter!

This is all about the wonderful experience you can have just by expanding your dry pantry to include a variety of international spices and flavours.

Many years ago (in the 80’s), I was fortunate to work in the food and beverage industry. I worked my way up and around from the service end to the kitchen end and worked under a number of very talented Chefs.

The one common factor in all good Chefs (home or professional) is the ability to mix, match and meld a bevy of spices into an amazing creation fit for any palate.

This early introduction to cooking and “Spicery” as I like to call it created a lifetime love affair with spices. From the earthy standards to the exotic mixtures of the Middle East and the Asian Continent; the combinations of flavours is endless.

In the North American culture, many people have avoided or never been exposed to these marvellous tastes and tantalizing layers of flavour. Our obsession with quick fix meals, fast food and processed food has created an almost entire generation of people who think fine food is a Gourmet Frozen Pizza.

In comes wonderful programming like the Food Network. Food TV both in Canada and the USA is a fantastic channel that promotes the exploration of flavour, texture and creatively wonderful food experiences.

As one of my favourite (late) personalities, Pasquale Carpino so aptly put it; cooking is combination of Art, Fantasy and Vocation. A very simple way to say that we combine our artistic abilities through creation of flavours while using our imagination to remove the limits on what we combine and then package this all together with the learning and knowledge that is important for the technical side of cooking (ID…how long to cook a roast).

“Spicery” is one of the most fantastic ways to bring out the Culinary Artist in you. Read about them, sample them, combine them and most of all experience them!

For my money, I would rather have a simple meal made at home with a gorgeous combination of flavourful spices than hammer down a Monster Burger from some fast food chain.

In happiness and health as always!

Mike C

Our own Mortality

Everyone faces the question of his or hers own mortality.  We don’t often dwell on it nor is it healthy to do so; but none-the-less it is a question that each of us faces from time to time.

Matters of health, fitness, medical history, lifestyle, genetics and personality play rolls in how we survive our lives.  In a perfect world, we would all have a magic formula that works everytime.  That is not the case.

Life is simply a journey in which we control our own destiny (for the most part).  We adapt, modify, re-evaluate, change and re-assess our choices and paths all the time.  Our physical life is much the result of our own action or inaction.

That holds true almost without fail.  The rare exeption happened this last weekend.  I was photographing a Triathlon as I do quite often.  I have been with this series since 2003 and love every minute of the events that I cover.

On Saturday September 12th at 12:42 PM I photographed a very fit athlete who was at the top of his age category.  Shortly after finishing the race, he collapsed and eventually passed away.

This is a person who was at the top of his age group, very fit and seemingly in perfect health.

Is there a lesson in this?  Possibly.  We should, if nothing else, accept that we don’t truly control our ultimate meeting with death but rather we live our lives in a fashion that befits our departure.  Kindness to others and respect to yourself is only part of the equation.  Living life to the fullest and all the old cliches are actually more accurate than we care to give credit.

Make your life count.  That is about the only advice I can give and the only credo that I follow.  I don’t subscribe to hype, political correctness, organized religion, political bantering or terrorists.  What I subscribe to is Life…the way I see it, the way I love it, the way I live it and the way I move through it.  In the end, my happiness will be shown on the smile on my face when my own life expires.

Maybe a little off my usual but still in happiness and health!

Mike C.

Easiest ever Tandoori Chicken

Easiest ever Tandoori Chicken

• 3 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 1 cup plain yogurt
• 4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon peeled and grated or crushed ginger root
• 3 tablespoons Sharwood’s Tandoori Spice (available in your local grocer spice section)
• 1 tsp salt

Mix the marinade ingredients in a large glass bowl. Add the chicken and coat and cover in fridge overnight. About 30 minutes before cooking, remove chicken from the marinade and let sit on a platter at room temperature.

Brush the grille with oil or spray with a non-stick spray. Grille the chicken on medium low heat turning often until it is done (about 15 -20 minutes).

Serve with slices of cucumber, tomatoes, red onion and some fragrant basmati rice.

In happiness and health as always,

Mike C.

Simple plans, better results

As life becomes busier with work, family, activities, socializing and more it is often the case that we overcomplicate our lives even more by adding complex “things” to our everyday fitness and nutrition.

In the last year, I have turned my fitness and nutrition into a simplified solution. I have found that often the most complicated plan or situation can be simplified to an almost rudimentary function.

Let’s start with fitness. Many people who are trying to get fit spend countless hours and dollars on workout plans, new gadgets, fitness fads and more. They often lose interest because the plans are almost always unnecessarily complicated.

Simplify your workout. Compound exercises (such as Bench Press, Deadlift, squats, lunges and others) work multiple muscle groups and nervous system branches. They are simple to do, simple to learn and very efficient. Build your weight training around a core of those exercises and keep the workout scheme simple using super sets when possible so your resistance training is done in 20 minutes!

Add some interval cardio (sprint/rest) and keep your method simple but keep changing how you do it (treadmill, rowing machine, stairs, body movement circuits…). You will find your workouts are quick, fun and very diverse.

Active resistance training and interval cardio = maintained/gained muscle

Next we move into the most complicated and confusing one of all…nutrition and diet. You don’t have to be a genius to know that there are tens of thousands of different diets, fads, supplements, wonder herbs and drugs and self proclaimed gurus.

The problem is that they all have a gimmick; every one of them preaches that their plan is the best and most of them have very little scientific research to back their claims. Oh ya…the biggest downfall is that most of them are so complicated you need to watch, count, measure and manage absolutely everything you put in your mouth.

And you wonder why most people fail when they start a new “diet plan”.

Here is the simplest, easy to understand, scientifically proven, undeniable, truthful program that you will ever hear…and it’s free!!! Are you ready?

Eat fewer calories = lose fat

While that is somewhat of an oversimplification it is also very true. If you want to lose fat, eat less, if you want to maintain muscle, use resistance training and add in interval cardio to help increase your metabolic burn.

Working it all out is pretty easy. I have made it my mantra to keep all my workouts as simple as possible. I work out at the gym four days per week (sometimes three). I do a 5 minute warm up run on the treadmill, do some ballistic stretching for about 5 minutes and then do 3-5 supersets of combined exercises that allow me to work hard and rest very little. I finish my workouts with 15-20 minutes of intervals of my choice. I am out of the gym in less than an hour every time!  I switch my exercise sequences, weight loads and rep sets every 4-6 weeks to keep from adapting and also to keep it interesting and challenging.

I like to keep my nutrition even more simple. I follow a routine of intermittent fasting which involves fasting from 2PM in the afternoon until 2PM the next day. I do this once or twice per week. The rest of the time, I eat a well balanced diet of mostly whole foods (not much processed stuff). I don’t count calories, carbs, protein, fat or anything else. I just make good food decisions most of the time and when I have a little “cheat” here and there, I don’t even concern myself with it as I know that my fasting puts me in a caloric deficit for the week.

“De-complicate” your fitness and nutrition. It is easier than you think and empowers you to take control of your own needs and results. It is amazing how much you can learn from yourself!!

In Happiness and Health as always,

Mike C.

Eat to Lose Fat Train to maintain muscle

A friend of mine and a brilliant eBook publisher Brad Pilon recently wrote a couple articles about losing weight (fat).  The basic message is that we need to eat less to lose fat and train properly in order to maintain/gain muscle.

Too many times you will see people in the “Cardio Confessional” thinking they can out train a bad diet.  Not so.  The amount of calories you burn is insignificant compared to what you intake.  Learning your body means learning what your threshold for weight gain, loss or maintenance is.  This simply means that everyone…I MEAN EVERYONE…has a different formula that will produce the results they want.

This sounds daunting, complicated and potentially expensive.  It may sound that way, but isn’t any of those things.  The key is to simplify your plan.  Making choices in food is as simple as this.  90% of the time, you need to eat whole, healthy, nutritious foods.  10% of the time you can stray from your plan and indulge in something that you truly crave.  This isn’t a licence to binge but rather a little “release valve” for us everyday folks who just want to enjoy a little now and then.

The other key is to plan a workout regimen that you enjoy and stick to.  Exercise is mandatory in maintaining good health.  It increases our quality of life, provides a stress release and also should provide a positive social environment to interact with. When you surround yourself with people who are healthy and like minded, it will help you to stick to your program.

The combination of simplified nutrition and enjoyable physical fitness is something anyone of any age can do successfully.  I myself follow a program of Intermittent fasting and simplified healthy food choices like ones outlined in The Diet Solution by Isabel De Los Rios.  Neither are complicated and both plans are great tools in finding your “zone”.

The key is not the nutrition plan you choose but the ability to stick to it.  Remember that simple is better and no one plan is right for everyone.  YOU have to adapt it to your lifestyle, your requirements and your goals.

In happiness and health as always,

Mike C.

Spanish Theme Party Part Three – Red Sangria

Sorry it has taken so long!  I have been crazy busy.  Our theme party is pushed back to later in August due to a bunch of stuff.  Anyway; here is the red sangria recipe I have tooled with and made several times.  I like it just as much made virgin as it is super fruity and refreshing!

Next week I will be posting a bunch of Tapas recipes to consider.  There are almost endless little food that makes for a great party but it seems Spanish cuisine has cornered the market on making some really fantastic and diverse tastes to enjoy anytime!

RED SANGRIA (Sangria Rossi)
This recipe is easy to double or triple based on the number of people you are expecting. The one thing to expect is that it WILL go fast!

INGREDIENTS
1 bottle of red wine (Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Rioja, Zinfandel, Shiraz)
1 lemon, cut into slices
1 orange, cut into slices
1 lime, cut into slices
2 tablespoons sugar
1 cup Pure orange Juice
1 small can of diced pineapples (with juice)
2 ounces Cointreau
1/2 cup of sliced strawberries
1/2 cup raspberries
4 cups ginger ale

PREPARATION
Pour wine into a pitcher or a bunch bowl and add all the citrus slices. Add the orange juice, sugar, pineapple and juice and the Cointreau. Chill overnight. Add ginger ale, berries and ice just before serving.

You can make this Virgin by using a high quality Pure Unsweetened Grape Juice. I have also made a virgin recipe by using a Sparkling Grape Champanade or similar product. As with the white version, I also like to freeze some grape juice to use as ice (although this usually goes so fast, the ice doesn’t have time to melt!).

In happiness and health as always!

Mike C.

Spanish Theme Party – Part 2

WHITE SANGRIA (Sangria Blanca)

This clear version of Sangria is a very refreshing and tasty summer drink that is a nice contrast to the traditional red version.  Both the spiked and virgin versions are really great and they look fantastic on a table side by side with the red sangria. While recipes are important as a basic guideline, it is always nice to experiment as well.  Try adding some berries (my daughter LOVES raspberries) or try a different combo of fruit.  Any way you slice it, this is a really nice presentation at any party table!

INGREDIENTS

White Grape Juice for making ice cubes
2 cups water
2 small bunches fresh mint
3/4 cups sugar
4 cinnamon sticks
6 cups white wine (I used CASTILLO DE MONSERAN VIURA)
(If you are making Virgin Sangria, used a good White Grape Juice such as Welch’s)
4 Peaches, peeled, pitted and sliced
4 Pears (I used Anjou), cut into chunks
4 medium oranges, sliced crosswise
4 lemons, sliced crosswise
6 cups White Champanade or suitable sparkling white grape cider
Mint leaves, to garnish (optional) 

PREPARATION

To make the grape juice ice cubes, pour the juice into two ice trays and freeze until the sangria is ready to serve. 

Combine the water, sugar, mint leaves and cinnamon sticks in a saucepan.  Bring to a boil and reduce to a low simmer for 15 minutes.  Remove from heat and cool.  Remove the cinnamon and mint.  Transfer the liquid to a large non-reactive container. 

Add the wine, peaches, pears, and the orange and lemon slices to the serving bowl. Mix well, and refrigerate overnight. 

To serve you will need a very large punch bowl (or two smaller).  Add the mixture and the sparkling beverage to the bowl along with grape juice ice cubes.  Garnish each glass with some fresh mint.  As an alternative, you can separate your mixture pitcher by pitcher.  Just add equal amounts of mixture and fruit to a glass pitcher, add some of the ice cubes and top with sparkling cider.

Makes 16-20 servings 

Next post will be Red Sangria and then into the FOOD!

In happiness and health as always!

Mike C.

Spanish Theme Party – Part 1

Everyone loves a theme party! Family, friends, adults, kids and puppies too! It isn’t really all that difficult to come up with any number of endless themes. Holiday themes, character themes or any number of other specialty party ideas can be hatched from anything!

My favourite themes are always the ethnic based ideas. Pick a culture from around the world and research a little bit. You will be amazed and delighted with how much you can learn about any culture by researching their food!

A lot of people are intimidated by the idea of cooking. Mostly it is lack of exposure to the kitchen. If you can follow instructions, you can do it! There are millions of resources on the Internet that explain in detail how to prepare certain recipes. Even if you just follow the basic recipe and don’t get creative; you will come out looking like a Genius!

Food is the one common denominator that everyone has. In North America, we take much for granted with our food consumption and often it becomes more of a “feeding frenzy” or a “Grab and Go” meal than anything.

The love of food and the importance of how food can bring us together as families and friends are far more prevalent in other cultures around the world. The meal is a time to gather, give thanks for what we have and to spend time in each other’s company.

While it isn’t always possible to dedicate a day to making a special night; you should at least attempt to make a special meal once or twice a week. Every week we have a nice meal with my Dad, brother and his girlfriend where we decide on a “theme” or style for the meal and then get it done.

When we entertain friends, it is much in the same. We decide whose house, what we would like and then split up the duties. We love trying new food tastes from other cultures and build around that central idea. Greek, Moroccan, Italian, Middle Eastern, Thai, Chinese, Japanese, Canadian or American regional styles and the list can goes on!

THE SPANISH THEME PARTY

That entire lovely prologue now brings me to the heart of this series of posts. Our latest summer bash is going to be a Spanish Theme. We have a nice back (side) yard with a pool and lots of patio and deck space so that is a plus. We are having around 20 people (adults and kids) and the food and celebration will last pretty much from 11AM until 11PM or so.

The idea of a Spanish theme is neat because there are so many tapas courses that we can serve throughout the day. Cold and hot tapas are a great way to enjoy a long day with friends while not overeating.

Beverages will range from beer and wine to a fantastic assortment of Sangria both Red and White, with and without alcohol. I have combined recipes and products and come up with some really fantastic tastes that are equally as good virgin as they are spiked! My kids LOVE the white virgin Sangria.

We will be highlighting the day with an amazing Paella dish. While true Paella will be cooked all in one HUGE Paella pan, most of us don’t have that in our kitchen. I do have a very large (I mean enormous) sauté pan that I use and the final dish is served on a giant rental platter from a local supply company.

Top off the evening with Spanish Coffee, assorted fruits, and an Orange Flan. You can’t get much better than having an entire day devoted to gathering with friends and family over some great fun, hot sun and wonderful tastes for any palate.

My next few posts will have a bunch of recipes and info that I have collected, tried and tweaked. If nothing else, it will give you some ideas as to how to plan your next memorable occasion!

In happiness and health as always!

Mike C.

Photo Tip – Camera Lenses

WHAT YOU SEE IS WHAT YOU GET…

Much of your success in your photography pursuits will depend on the quality of the lens you have. The optical quality of the lens whether on a point and shoot fixed lens camera or on a DSLR will give you results that vary greatly. What your sensor sees is truly what it gets.

Most consumer digital cameras are sold with a fixed zoom lens that can’t be removed or replaced. One big advantage is that the camera is sealed so no dust can get on the image sensor. Digital SLR cameras have removable lenses so you can change them when circumstances dictate. While most of your initial budget with a DSLR will be on the camera; it is always a good idea to really research your lens needs in advance and provide a higher price budget to get a better quality lens. Your lens will be with your through your first, second, third and fourth camera and beyond if you take care of it.

Commando Fact

Although it may sound like a SCI-FI movie, there are a number of liquid lenses now being used in some camera phones! They focus by changing shape when controlled by electrical impulse controls.

THE EYES OF THE BEHOLDER…

Many lenses display information that is useful in your photography. Be sure to consider this information when choosing a lens and take the time to read any printed information that comes with a lens. You camera lens is truly what gives you the photos you are looking at. Your photos are only as good as the lens that sees them.

FOCAL LENGTH

The focal length of a lens has a huge impact on your images and is one of the most important tools in your creative tool box. On fixed lens cameras you change the focal length by using your zoom lens. On DSLR’s you can do the same or change lenses. T he various focal lengths you can use are referred to by terms that can be confusing at first.

- Wide-angle, short focal length, short lens and zoom out refer to the same thing lenses that capture a wide expanse of a scene.

- Telephoto, long focal length, long lens and zoom in refer to the same thing lenses that bring distant subjects closer.

The focal length you choose is a creative choice because it has two effects on your images:

Angle of view refers to how much of a scene the lens covers. Fisheye lenses, the widest available, can capture up to 180-degrees. As you zoom in or change lenses to increase the focal length, the field of view narrows and you can isolate small portions of the scene without moving closer to the subject.

Magnification is related to the lens’ angle of view. Since using a short focal length lens or zooming out includes a wide sweep of the scene, all of the objects in the scene are reduced to fit into the image. Zooming in or using a longer focal length lens gives a much narrower angle of view, so objects in a scene appear larger.

Your choice of lens depends in part on what you plan to do with the camera. Wide-angle lenses are best for photographing buildings, landscapes, interiors, and street photography. Telephoto lenses are best for portraits and many nature scenes. Normal lenses are a compromise.

ZOOM…ZOOM

Most fixed lens cameras have a built-in zoom lens. Zooms are also the popular choice with most DSLR users. These lenses are popular because they let you choose any focal length within the range the lens is designed for. A zoom lens for a DSLR’s can range greatly in price based on a number of factors. Optics quality, features such as IS (image stabilization) or VR (Vibration Reduction), the range of the zoom, a floating or fixed f/stop and more can bring your lens anywhere from a couple hundred to several thousand dollars. You have to take into consideration where the lens will be used, what you are willing to budget and truly ask yourself, “Do I need this feature?”

IT’S THE NORM…

A “normal lens” for a 35mm camera usually refers to a fixed focal length lens of 50mm or a zoom lens zoomed in a little from its widest angle. When using a lens of this focal length, the scene looks about the same as it does to the unaided eye. With a longer focal length, everything appears closer than it actually is. With a shorter focal length, everything looks farther away.

THE SHORT OF IT…

Using a short focal length lens or zooming out gives you a wide-angle of view that lets you capture a wide expanse of a scene. This view is ideal for use in tight spaces, such as when photographing landscapes and in small rooms where you can’t position the camera a great distance from the subject.

A short lens also has great depth of field so it’s good for street or action photographs. When responding to quickly unfolding scenes this depth of field lets you respond quickly without worrying about focus.

Short lenses also let you focus very close to your subject, and the effect this can have on the perspective in your images can be dramatic. Objects very close to the camera loom much larger than those farther in the background. This distortion in the apparent size of objects can deliberately give emphasis and when carried to an extreme, give an unrealistic appearance to a scene.

LONG, LONG AGO…

A long focal length lens acts somewhat like a telescope in that it magnifies the image of your subject. This is especially useful when you can’t get close to your subject— or don’t want to. Long lenses are ideal for wildlife, portrait, and candid photography, whenever getting close to a subject might disturb it. The long focal length lets you keep your distance and still fill the viewfinder frame with the subject. Keeping at a distance eliminates the exaggerated perspective caused by working very close to a subject with a shorter focal length lens. It also helps relax your subjects if they get uneasy, as many people do, when a camera comes close.

As the focal length of a lens increases, the depth of field gets shallower so you must focus more carefully. Also, a long lens visually compresses space, making objects in the scene appear closer together than they actually are. The primary drawback of a long lens is that most (but not all) such lenses have a smaller maximum aperture. This may force you to use a slower shutter speed. Also, since a long lens magnifies movement, just as it magnifies the subject, you may also have to use a tripod instead of hand-holding the camera. Fast lenses, shutter speed and the advent of image stabilized lenses have reduced the need for a tripod, however if you have a monster 400m f/2.8 lens attached to your pro DSLR camera, you are going to need a monopod, tripod or extremely strong arms!

THE SAME…BUT DIFFERENT

Canon and Nikon, with their vast arrays of lenses, have a real advantage over other camera companies that make DSLRs. Since developing a lens line-up is hugely expensive, there are only two ways companies can overcome this disadvantage:

The easiest way is for the company to license the lens mount from one of the leaders so their lenses work with your camera. Fuji has done this with Nikon so you can buy a Fuji camera and use it with Nikon lenses. Sony has also acquired Minolta and is using their lens mount in a range of new cameras and lenses.

A more expensive way is to join with other companies to share the costs of development. Olympus (along with Kodak, Fuji Photo Film, Panasonic, Sanyo and Sigma) are doing this with the Four Thirds System.

There are also independent third-party companies that make lenses for cameras. To reduce costs, their lenses can be used with more than one camera make just by changing the mount, sometimes using an adapter. Many of these lenses are quite good and usually less expensive than those from camera companies.

SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW…

Digital SLR cameras use electrical connections to set the lens aperture and adjust focus. When you upgrade to digital you can’t assume that your older lenses will work with your new camera. It depends on how old they are. Lenses with mechanical mounts definitely won’t work, but even some older lenses that have electrical connections may not work or lose some of their features.

Many camera companies that use smaller image sensors in their digital SLRs are introducing lenses designed specifically for these sensors. Because they create a smaller image circle, these lenses can be lighter and less expensive. However, if you ever upgrade to a model that has a full-frame sensor you won’t be able to use these lenses because the image circle will be too small to cover the sensor. Camera companies make this obvious by designing the lens mount so it won’t attach to a full-frame camera.

ADD SOME PUNCH!

If your camera has a fixed lens, you may be able to use lens converters to decrease or increase its focal length. There are two popular accessories for cameras with interchangeable lenses. Both fit between the lens and the camera body. Extenders extend the range of the lens. For example, a 2x lens converter will make a 100mm lens into a 200mm lens. Most interchangeable lenses also can be fitted with a teleconvertor. This will increase your focal length but will also move your f/stop up by two or three stops making your lens a little less functional for shooting action sports.

Commando Fact

A Macro lens is a specialty lens that allows you to get very close to a subject. Floral, insect and small item photography is its primary use. The catch is that macro lenses have a very shallow depth of field and therefore your focus has to be exact!

This post is an exerpt from Mike’s Commando Guide Cameras and Equipment.  Sign up for our Newsletter and you get a complete free copy of the Commando Guide!

In happiness and health as always…

Mike C.

Nearly Famous Egg Burger

I love eggs and so do my wife and kids.  We are always “cooking up” different ways to have them and don’t care if it’s for breakfast, lunch or dinner.  We eat Organic, Omega 3 fortified eggs from a local farm and love the nice, deep yellow colour of them.  We also know how really fresh they are!

As a quick breaky or lunch, I have concocted a mix of different ideas to come up with our family favourite, The Nearly Famous Egg Burger.  It is a great and super easy way to get a complete meal that you can hold in your hand.

INGREDIENTS
1 Egg (of your choice)
1/4 cup Egg White (I use the Carton variety)
1/3 cup of “The Mixture” (recipe to follow)
1 Slice Real Cheddar Cheese (or your favourite)
Lettuce
Sliced Tomato
Salt & Pepper to taste
1 Thin Pita Style Burger Bun (They look like a burger sized pita)

METHOD
Spray a cereal bowl with no stick spray
Crack your egg and add your egg whites
Scramble and add “The Mixture”
Season as desired (I add Cayenne Pepper)
Cook on high for about 90 seconds (1000 watt microwave)
Toast your pita bun
Dress with the lettuce and tomato and slice of cheddar
When the egg is done, add it on top and voila…an Egg Burger!

The Mixture
I make a tonne of this and keep it in the fridge for omelets as well.
1 green pepper chopped
1 red pepper chopped
1 medium onion chopped
3 cups of chopped mushrooms

Saute all the indgredients until crisp but tender.

Enjoy