Monica Bravo

Braised Red Cabbage with Walnuts

Looking for a yummy side dish with lunch or dinner? This Braised Red Cabbage with Walnuts is a great side dish and goes with almost any entree. PLUS it’s both Paleo and Vegan!

As I’m writing this post I am actually walking on the treadmill at this super nice Spa Fitness facility in Covington. There are a few treadmills that I discovered can hold my computer, which makes this 6 mile walk go by a bit faster. Last night I did the whole Netflix and elliptical combo which is super effective since I HAD to see what happened in the next episode of Private Practice. …

Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes with Blueberries and Pecans

By Monica Bravo 11 Comments

For those who don’t know, this summer I’ve been working at Opal Basil, a fine dining restaurant in Mandeville, Louisiana. For the past couple of months, I feel like I’ve just been soaking it all up and I forget how far I’ve come. The first day that I worked in the kitchen, the knife honestly scared me. Not because it was sharp, but because I wasn’t comfortable with using it yet. Now I can’t wait to get back in the kitchen whenever Chef Rob needs me!

One of the things I love about the restaurant is its versatility. Every time I go in I’m surprised at what event we have to cook for and what we will be making. Each week we make over 100 pre-made Paleo meals for clients, and the menu just depends on what’s in season and what we have on hand. Some customers get meals for the whole week, or some get meals for just dinner each week. We always include a protein and a ton of vegetables….

Testimonial Tuesday: Losing 85 Pounds with Paleo

By Monica Bravo 2 Comments

Alexander’s story is truly inspiring! He decided to make a change and lost 85 pounds, through a Paleo Diet and exercise. Sometimes it just takes finding the right tools.

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Throughout my life, I was never what you would consider thin. I always had a weight problem. I was the chubby, short boy who was chosen last for sports. I never thought about a way to change my life because I assumed that was who I was, and I needed to live with that.
I started high school and was always busy with musical theatre rehearsal or studying. I did not think about my weight until junior year when I started playing inline hockey with St. Paul’s School. I tried to lose weight. I hired a trainer hoping that working out would help me, but I didn’t know that the key ingredient was what I was eating before and after those workouts. Going into my senior year of high school, I weighed about 185 pounds, had a waist size of 36, and wore a 44S jacket. My weight didn’t fluctuate much over that year, and I weighed about the same when I started at Tulane University.
Tulane was when everything got worse. I dreaded the upcoming years knowing the “freshman 15” would soon turn into a reality. I tried exercising but studying for my Pre-Med classes and rehearsing for my musicals became so overwhelming that I resorted to eating very unhealthily. My diet consisted of processed foods loaded with high fructose corn syrup and sugar. I became accustomed to eating pizza in the cafeteria everyday with ice-cream for dessert. The “freshman 15” soon turned into the “college 80”. By the end of my junior year at Tulane I weighed around 265 pounds. I wore a size 44 pant and a jacket size of 50S. I was extremely heavy, but did not think anything of it. I was getting cast in roles that my weight worked for, and I wasn’t playing any sports that required me to be lighter. Then in May 2014, I knew something needed to change….

Monica Bravo

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